The Last of Azarath
by schmuck
Summary: Something sinister seems to be developing within Raven, consuming her. As they scramble to solve the mystery of her affliction, the Titans find themselves facing a near unstoppable foe…RobxRae
1. A State of Fear

Here is book number two for me. I've spent a lot of time building up a great story and making sure I'm proud of every single word, so I know everyone will love it. Now, this is a sequel to Phobia, but it can easily be read and enjoyed without having read the first book. Basically, here are the three most important points to know:

Raven and Beast Boy are on very bad terms

The villain was a woman named Phobia who had the ability to force people to live our their fears (she was defeated by Raven in the end)

Raven and Robin got all passionate, but the other Titans do not know

Oh, and despite what the first bit might suggest, it is not a direct continuation from my last story, so no one should feel like they're missing something. And that's it. Now everyone can fall in love with The Last of Azarath. It begins one week after the end of Phobia.

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"Please Raven, we don't have to do this."

"Friend, is there not some part of you still left?"

Crackles of dark energy flowed over her tightly closed fists. Raven stood motionless, brilliant white emanating forth from her eyes, illuminating her pale skin. The expression on her face remained passive, unmoved by the pleas of her friends. Snapping her hand upward, Raven released an arch shaped blast that slammed against Starfire, impelling her backward fiercely.

Dropping to the ground, thick green hair burst out of Beast Boy's skin and smooth fangs protruded from his mouth as he assumed the form of a leopard. He lowered his body closer to the ground, tensing the muscles in his hind legs, and leapt at Raven with his front paws extended outward. She slid forward low on the soles of her boots and pushed her palms straight up, directly onto the underbelly of an airborne Beast Boy. A flash of black erupted beneath him, thrusting Beast Boy upward in an awkward spin.

Disrupting the tumultuous rotations by morphing into a hummingbird, Beast Boy dived toward the ground and shifted back to a human, landing softly on his feet. He whirled around to face Raven, taking a harsh blast to his shin from her that sent a ripple of pain through his leg and buckled his knee. Raven directed her pointer and middle fingers at Beast Boy, unleashing a slender streak of dark energy from the tips that cleanly sliced through the outer part of his right bicep. Beast Boy let out a howl and clutched at the wound with his left hand. The grey glove rapidly grew crimson and warm blood percolated from the gaps between his digits.

Raven ran her lithe fingers around her leotard, retrieving two undulating daggers from the loosely hanging belt encircling her waist. She took one step in Beast Boy's direction, but was pulled backward and gasped as Starfire tightly wrapped her arms around Raven from behind, forcing her limbs down stiffly at her side and restricting her movement.

"I do not wish to hurt you, Raven," Starfire said softly into her ear. "You must fight it!"

With her feet dangling slightly above the ground, Raven remained still for a moment. Then she smashed the back of her skull into Starfire's face with a savage degree of strength. A pained groan rushed out from Starfire's mouth and her head sunk backward. Spinning the daggers upward, Raven flicked her wrists, slitting the skin just belong Starfire's elbows and breaking her solid hold.

Raven rotated her body and lunged at an awkwardly balanced Starfire, driving her foot into the Tamaranean's uncovered gut and knocking her back a step. Twisting her upper body, Raven loosed a charge at Beast Boy's chest, aggressively propelling him onto his back, and then pivoted to face Starfire again, narrowly missing with a vicious swipe of one dagger but connecting with a potent strike of dark energy from her other hand.

A drop of blood trickled from the lengthy slice on Starfire's right arm, splashing onto her knee as she clumsily climbed to her feet, delicately holding her arms close to her. Raven slipped the daggers back onto her belt and boldly strode forward, her face devoid of emotion. Starfire gingerly raised one hand and launched a small starbolt, which Raven effortlessly deflected with a wave of her hand. Timidity exhibited on Starfire's face; she was undeniably uneasy about attacking one of her best friends. Unfortunately, Raven had no such compunctions.

Starfire stared at her approaching friend, a quiver of fear in her emerald eyes. She lifted her other hand and closed it into a loose fist, creating a pulsating green orb around it, but hesitated a fraction of a second too long. Raven swung her right arm upward in a wide circle, emitting a ball that surged toward Starfire. Too close for avoidance, Starfire instinctively shielded herself with her arms, shrieking as the shot burned against her torn skin, painfully cauterizing the wounds.

Raven's right arm remained outstretched, with swirls of black encircling her open hand. The swirls expanded and rapidly overtook her entire hand, until the dark energy erupted outward in the form of a fist, billowing through the air and truculently grasping Starfire's torso. The massive extremities mimicked Raven as she slowly closed her own fingers, suffocating the scarlet haired girl. With her one free arm, Starfire clutched at the black hand, desperately trying to loosen its grip, but found no success.

Finally the features on Raven's face changed, showing emotion for the first time. She smiled.

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Raven woke up sharply, panting heavily for breath, her back rigid and stiff when she sat up straight in her bed. She was covered in a cold sweat, and her leotard was thoroughly wet, clinging uncomfortably to her body. Raven ran her hands over her face, brushing aside strands of wet hair sticking to her forehead. One sleeve of her leotard was rolled up past her elbow, and the sheets were messily scrunched up at the foot of her bed.

She leaned back against the headboard and pulled her legs up to her chest, tightly wrapping her arms around them. Raven let her head slide forward, resting her chin atop her knees. She stared down at her trembling fingers, terribly shaken by the disturbing dream.

Raven had not seen the dream through her eyes, but was separate from it all, like a removed observer. She could see _herself_. And it was just so real. She could actually feel the pain Starfire was subjected to and see the burning anguish on Beast Boy's face. But Raven was far more troubled by the emotions that she had displayed. It was unsettling to see herself striking her friends with a complete lack of regard and compassion. Toward the end her emotions underwent a shift and she seemed to be filled with exhilaration, even euphoria, and that turned Raven's stomach. Her friends were the only thing in her life with meaning—they _were_ her life. To see them suffering at her hands was almost too much to bear. But having their pain induce joy in the Raven she watched, a vision of herself, was more than just sickening.

Tilting her head to the side, she stared out the large window beside her bed. The sun was fully over the horizon, sending out beams of light that danced over the clear, blue ocean and crept across the floor of her bedroom.

The other Titans dismissed dreams as having no relevance, merely a jumble of thoughts without meaning. Beast Boy had outright laughed at Raven one morning when she attempted to describe a dream to Robin, telling her that dreams had no point. Starfire was more sympathetic but lacked the requisite understanding, as Tamaraneans were incapable of dreaming. With his scientific driven mind, Cyborg was often skeptical of anything that could not be clearly scrutinized and unequivocally proven correct or false. Robin tended to give some weight to the meaning of dreams, though ultimately he displayed uneasiness about something his conscious mind was not in control of. Raven, however, was frightened. Her skin had broken out into goose bumps and a terrible shiver ran down her spine.

Azarathians were a very magical and superstitious people, and recognized dreams as being akin to visions, which could represent past regrets or inner most desires and wishes. Dreams for the most powerful individuals, those with mental abilities like Raven for example, meant so much more though. Their minds were capable of altering reality, creating a more desirable world, or in some cases of even prophesizing the future. In the past Raven had indeed demonstrated an inclination to clairvoyance, seeing what would become of the world after she became the portal for her father.

At the moment, Raven refused to believe she had witnessed a vision of the future. Nothing on Earth could drive her to attack her friends. The very idea of it was absurd, as was the possibility that the dream somehow represented the desires of her subconscious mind. There could easily be another explanation, though that thought made everything no less racking.

Determinedly she pushed what she had seen from her mind. Horrified at the painful possibilities of what might come, the images were capable of eating away at Raven and reducing her to a state of fear. If that were to occur there was no telling what destructive potential her powers might have. Being in control of those powers was foremost on Raven's mind at all times. Emotions like fear or anger could lead to confusion and a remarkable lack of control if not properly checked.

She had learned how to channel many passionate feelings—joy, excitement, love—without losing control, which allowed her to feel more than she ever thought possible upon first meeting the Titans. Perhaps it was a wonderful side effect of growing so close to her friends, who themselves displayed such a range of emotions. These sentiments were in stark contrast to the stoic upbringing of an Azarathian, and naturally produced a change in Raven. Despite this, darker sensations still remained closed to her. There were times when Raven wished she could vent her frustration or scream out in anger just like any of the other Titans did. She was in greater control of her emotions now than ever before, and at times could allow a small rush of anger to escape her, but the need for her to be ever vigilant in suppressing those most intense feelings remained.

Her soft breathing and the repetitive ticks of the clock beside her bed were the only sounds in the room for a long time. When an adequate calm had settled over her, Raven swung her legs out over the bed, putting her bare feet down on the floor. Rubbing her forehead, she stood up somewhat awkwardly and slowly ambled across the room. She quietly slipped out of her damp leotard, replacing it with one of the dry ones hanging in her closet, and slid her feet into the boots beside her dresser.

She glanced over at her small clock, which showed it was just coming up for eight o'clock. Though she was never the biggest morning person, Raven had no intention of trying to fall back asleep. Deciding she was better off staying awake rather than risking the chance of having another dream, Raven threw on her deep blue cloak and headed toward her door.

As she approached, a tiny tapping came from the other side, barely audible over her own soft footsteps. When the metal door whooshed open, Beast Boy was standing there with one of his small hands raised in a fist, ready to quietly knock again. His pointed ears were drooping slightly, indicating to Raven that he was anxious and uneasy about something. In many ways his ears were like a dog's tail, betraying whatever emotion he was currently feeling.

"Uh, hi Raven," he said with a slightly apprehensive voice.

Raven stared at him for a moment without speaking. While Robin had recently lifted Raven out of a forlorn state and filled her with happiness, she was still upset with the changeling. It had been a week since Raven had last spoken with Beast Boy, and conversing with him now was certainly a rather unappealing prospect.

Finally she said, "You're up early."

"I'm having trouble sleeping. I've been wanting to talk to you."

Raven's features did not change. "Have you?" she replied dryly.

Beast Boy nodded. "I'm sorry for the way I acted last week. I was so sad about Terra that I ignored you when all you wanted to do was help me. I was a total jerk."

"I know."

Beast Boy furrowed his eyebrows in surprise. "Uh, isn't this where you're supposed to forgive me?"

Raven stared back at him coldly. "No."

"Jeez Raven, I'm just trying to apologize," Beast Boy said, slightly irritated. "I feel bad for the way I treated you and I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?" Raven asked. "You don't know what you _should_ be sorry for."

"Huh?"

"Cyborg told you everything about Phobia, right?"

"Yeah."

"Do you have any idea why she was able to get inside my mind?"

Beast Boy did not say a word.

"I wasn't in control of my emotions. And it was because of you."

"Because of me?"

"I was thinking about how much of an asshole you were and I couldn't concentrate on anything else. I was too busy being pissed at you to properly focus."

"I…I'm sorry…"

"My frustration and anger got the better of me, and everyone's life was put in jeopardy because of it. I could've stopped Phobia right away if I had been able to focus."

"I didn't know," he replied, stuttering. A tiny droplet of moisture appeared in the corner of his eye. "Really Raven, I'm so sorry."

"Save it. You're so selfish, Beast Boy. Do you know that? If you had been thinking about anything other than yourself no one's life would have been at risk. But no, you couldn't do that. Terra's nothing but a little witch, but you keep clinging to her like something could actually develop between the two of you."

Beast Boy's lower lip quivered and the tear in his eye grew larger. The hairs on his body stood on end and his chest tightened. He was uncomfortably hot.

Raven stepped past him into the hallway, turning her head to look at him one last time. "I'm not ready to forgive you."

Her violet hair whipped around as Raven swiftly walked away, leaving Beast Boy standing still outside her room. She did not look back.

The hallway seemed oddly claustrophobic as Raven steadily moved down it. Her breathing was slightly constricted, forcing her to concentrate on calming herself. The last thing she needed after having such a tormenting dream was a confrontation with Beast Boy. Perhaps she had been overly harsh on him, but Raven had no intention of easily forgiving him and letting him off lightly. His own stubbornness had resulted in Raven having a clouded mind, which led directly to the entirely avoidable peril the others were placed in.

When she rounded the first corner and was out of sight, Raven stopped for a moment, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She had come close to letting out just a little too much anger. Stopping what she was doing and breathing deeply was often all Raven needed to regain composure.

Robin was usually fixing himself breakfast at this time, after having already finished his daily training, so Raven made her way toward the main room of the Tower. The boy wonder insisted it be called the "Operations Room" but that name had never caught on with the others. Robin had even labeled the door leading into the room with his preferred name. In a running gag, Cyborg and Beast Boy would tape a sheet of lined paper that had "Main Room" written in pencil on it over the door time and time again—an endless source of frustration for Robin and amusement for the two pranksters. There were always bits of tape still stuck to the door after Robin had ripped off the last piece of paper.

Her lips slowly formed into a smile thinking about Robin. Though she would never tell him, Raven thought Robin was so cute whenever he got upset about those signs. He would scrunch his face up like a little boy and ask, "Why do they keep doing this to me?"

The past week had been wonderful for Raven. She had opened up to Robin and found love for the first time in her life. A smile from Robin did wonders for her, melting away every emotion other than happiness. Around him, she needn't think about anything but the moment.

The steel double doors to the main room whisked apart at Raven's approach and she lightly descended the stairs in front of her, glancing around. Cyborg was hunched over the far counter in the kitchen off to her right, busily working on something. Raven walked over to him, eyeing the opened containers and condiments that were strewn about.

Cyborg cocked his head over his shoulder to look at her as she approached. "Morning Rae."

"Hey Cyborg," Raven said as she came up beside him.

The mechanical man was constructing a gargantuan sandwich, dripping with every sauce imaginable. At the moment, the top layer consisted of four different kinds of cheese, which sat on at least five sliced tomatoes and an entire head of lettuce. Below that so much was wedged and packed in that it was no more than an indistinguishable mess. Cyborg grabbed hold of his Chef "CyBQ" sauce and vigorously squirted it over the Havarti and Swiss cheese that decorated the very top.

A short, high-pitched beep filled the air and Cyborg happily rubbed his hands together at the sound. Bending down, he opened the stove and pulled out a mammoth pot roast that glistened with oils and grease. He placed it on the counter top and started cutting thin slices that he laid on the sandwich. There was a sparkle in his eye that Raven only saw when he was working with food or his beloved T-Car.

"You've had a productive morning so far I see. But how are you even going to get that in your mouth?"

"You just let me worry about that," Cyborg replied with a smile that spread across his entire face. "So what are you doing up this early?"

"I was just having a little trouble sleeping, that's all. Where's Robin?"

"He's over at the prison."

"I guess Phobia's finally awake then."

"You got it. My carefully designed Brain Band seems to be working just fine."

"So it's blocking her powers?"

"Far as I can tell." He paused to toss the pan from the pot roast into the sink and let out a very gleeful sound at the completion of his breakfast. "You going to eat something?"

Raven looked at the massive sandwich in front of her as Cyborg picked it up in his hands. "If there's any food left in the Tower, then maybe."

She stared at Cyborg with a mixture of disgust and admiration as he managed to wrap his lips around the edge of the sandwich, taking his first bite. "I don't know whether to be impressed or horrified that you just fit that into your mouth."

Cyborg's cheeks were puffed out in huge swells and he opened the very corner of his mouth in reply to her, but nothing quite comprehensible came out, other than a few bits of chewed food that splattered onto the floor. Though Raven thought she heard the word "impressed," she could not be sure.

"On second thought," she began, "I think I'll just stick to tea." Raven turned to fetch her kettle, letting her mind drift to thoughts of Robin.

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I hope everyone thoroughly enjoyed the first chapter. Chapter two will be super filled by action and incredible fight sequences, so you can all look forward to that. Unfortunately updates are not going to be tremendously speedy. I'd like them to be, but school has other plans for me. I promise on all that is good in this world that I will not take more than a month to update. I'd even like to aim for every three weeks. I know that seems like forever, but I've been absorbed by fics on here that have taken 2 or 3 months to update. And sometimes waiting is fun! Yeah, that's just an excuse, I know. But you'll have the next update by mid December or so. Thanks for reading everyone, and definitely drop me a review.


	2. Feral Stone

For those of you who haven't read Phobia, the first little bit of this chapter won't mean as much. You won't be confused by anything, but it just won't be as important to you. But don't worry, it's short – and then the rest of the chapter is perhaps the most intense action sequence any of you will ever read. I'm absolutely giddy about it…and I don't use the word giddy.

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Robin felt a small degree of uneasiness sitting in the small, barren room. His skin was practically crawling from the moment he had first looked into the cold, unforgiving eyes of the woman across from him. To stare into them was to see the soul of a person without a conscience and a heart devoid of emotion or sympathy.

He clasped his gloved hands together and placed them on the smooth, metal table that sat in the middle of the quiet room. Phobia was at the other end, her hands stiffly locked in place by two rounded slots rising from the table's surface. A thin grey band ran around her head, snugly fitting over the short, forest green hair that fell just past her ears. The hair hung to one side of her head, leaving the other half of her forehead uncovered and revealing a large crescent laceration that started below the hairline and ran upward into her thick hair. Though it had healed well in a week's time, Phobia would no doubt carry the scar with her for the rest of her life.

Robin looked down at the manila file folder lying open on the table in front of him that had been assembled only the day before. It contained a small photograph of Phobia, wearing Cyborg's grey band, and what little information was known about her. Unwilling to risk the release of her impressive powers, the Titans had insisted she be permanently sedated until some sort of device could be completed to block her abilities. After a long week of meticulously designing and analyzing, Cyborg at last felt he had successfully constructed such a device.

Though Raven was not particularly thrilled to help, preferring Phobia remain unconscious indefinitely, she had grudgingly wore the device around her own head in a test. When she found herself unable to project her mental abilities, Phobia had promptly been fitted with the band and awakened. Consequently, this was one of the first interactions anyone would have with the heinous woman.

Robin raised his head, once more looking across the table. Even wearing his mask, he could feel the penetrating stare of Phobia. "You know why I'm here."

"To visit me. I'm not surprised, you haven't been able to take your eyes off me."

"Cut the bullshit, Angela. I haven't got the time."

Phobia raised one of her eyebrows and curled the upper right side of her lips, forming a half smile. "Angela?"

"You're not Phobia anymore. All you are now is Angela Hawkins."

"You might have been able to block my powers, but I'll always be Phobia. I severed any links I had with my family long ago."

Robin glanced down at the file again, scanning the scant amount of information. "I know," he replied. "Lord and Lady Hawkins, members of the British aristocracy, disappeared under mysterious circumstances more than ten years ago." He brought his gaze up to Phobia once more. "Somehow I doubt it was mysterious to you."

Phobia's eyes narrowed to slits. "Daddy didn't want any of his highbrow friends to know about my abilities, my 'deformity' as he called it. He thought it might hurt his reputation and embarrass him. So he kept me hidden away. Why should I have shown him compassion if he didn't show it to me?"

"And your mother?"

"She didn't care either." Phobia spoke in a frighteningly steady and dry tone, unaffected by any emotions and devoid of regret. It was simply matter of fact to her. "They created Phobia. I became what I had to in order to survive. They were just in the way at the start." A sadistic smile spread across her face and she shrugged her shoulders. "C'est la vie."

Robin could feel the hairs on his body rise. His entire family had been mercilessly taken away from him years before and he would do anything to bring them back, to tell his parents just once more how much he loved them. Phobia's parents may not have truly cared for her, but having parents was viewed as a gift to a person like Robin. Her callousness and ruthless behaviour disturbed him greatly. Raven was absolutely right—Phobia was the embodiment of cruel.

"I said I was under a time constraint and I also don't want to spend any more time around you than absolutely necessary. So believe me when I say I expect you to be upfront with me. Why were you after us?"

"Revenge. I want retribution."

"Revenge? I've never even seen you before. I told you I expected the truth." Robin pushed his chair back, standing up from behind the table. "I'm going to get a lot more unpleasant unless you start telling me the truth _now_."

Phobia smirked. "This time I'm not trying to make you upset, birdie. And I am being truthful. You may not have seen me, or at least don't remember seeing me, but I remember you full well."

Robin pressed his fists down on the table, leaning in close to her. "Start talking."

"You and the rest of the Titans crushed the Brotherhood in Paris two weeks ago. I was there. The Brain recruited me years ago, when I still only had partial control over my powers. He found me just as Mento and the Doom Patrol forced the Brotherhood underground and he saw my potential and strength when everyone else was just terrified of me. He nurtured my abilities, helped me grow more powerful.

"After we captured you I thought we'd won. I laughed when that small, pathetic group crashed in, trying to free you and the others. But the reality sunk in as the fighting intensified and I knew it was over for us. When your focus was on the Brain and Mallah I managed to slip away. I swore to myself that I would have revenge on you and every Titan for what happened. I tell you this willingly because it really doesn't matter that you know. This little band of metal around my head will hold me for a while, but there's nothing you can do to stop me from carrying out my vengeance."

Robin pushed himself up from the table, never taking his eyes off Phobia. "We've already stopped you." He stared at her for a moment longer and then turned away sharply, his footsteps echoing loudly in the small room as he walked toward the door.

The quietness in the room was such that Phobia could easily hear the soft click of the turning doorknob when Robin spun it to open the door. He exited without making another sound, leaving Phobia alone. Then she smiled.

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The adjacent room was slightly dim when Robin entered. Two men stood in silence, still staring through the one-way glass at Phobia. The closer of the two wore a light brown suit jacket and black tie that curved outward at the bottom, hanging over the man's bulging stomach. His left hand rested in one of the pockets on his trousers, and he sipped coffee out of a Styrofoam cup with the other.

"You get all that, Captain?" Robin asked, still holding the door open with his outstretched hand.

Captain Marshall turned away from the large pane of glass. "We did."

"Phobia's more dangerous than we originally thought."

"I know," he replied, nodding and taking another sip of his drink. "Association with the Brotherhood of Evil is not entirely unexpected considering everyone that was rounded up in Paris. We're raising her potential threat level and she'll be relocated to a more secure wing of the prison."

"Good."

"And how long will that band of yours hold back her powers?"

"It should last indefinitely. If there are any problems, let us know."

"We'll be sure to."

Robin stepped back into the hallway, closing the door behind him, but stopped part way. "Don't underestimate her."

He closed the door firmly and briskly proceeded down the hallway to the prison's main entrance, passing through several security checkpoints along the way. One of the security guards raised a hand to his forehead in a half salute out of respect when Robin passed and a young guard in front of the main door snapped to attention and whisked it open for him, trembling slightly as the Boy Wonder strode past, no doubt nervous to be in his presence. Bright sunlight streamed down when Robin stepped out into the courtyard in front of the prison, forcing him to half close his eyes.

The R-Cycle sat close by, magnificently reflecting the sun's rays. Robin slowly walked toward it, hearing a loud clang as the thick metal door was shut behind him. After only a step the communicator on his belt came to life. A very stern faced Cyborg appeared on the small screen when Robin flipped it open.

"You better get your butt in gear, because we've got a situation."

"What's the problem?"

"Cinderblock's been spotted downtown in the financial district at Wilks and Clement."

"I'm on my way. Get there as fast as you can."

"We're already en route."

Robin snapped the communicator shut and charged to the R-Cycle, leaping onto it and thrusting his helmet snugly over his head. Within moments the motorcycle let out a fierce roar, powerfully rumbling beneath him, and the back tire spun rapidly, squealing and kicking up dirt. Robin twisted the vehicle around ninety degrees, spraying gravel in all directions, and felt the pressure on his chest grow instantaneously when it whipped forward, the front tire severing its contact with the ground at the outset.

The motorcycle shuddered as the front tire slammed back against the ground, its speed rising at a reckless rate. The massive steel gate into and out of the prison complex was directly in front of Robin and happened to already be open, admitting a dark grey prison truck. Leaning to his right, Robin shifted the R-Cycle's position slightly, while the guard driving the prison truck ahead of him slammed on the brakes, screeching to a stop and leaving two long black tire marks along the road. Robin did not release the accelerator even a fraction as the distance closed, barely passing between the large vehicle and the steel wall of the open gate, his cape grazing the rear view mirror on the driver's side.

A rush of warm air met Robin when he emerged onto open road, his speed so intense he appeared as nothing more than a red streak over the concrete. The cityscape rose majestically on the horizon several kilometres away, glinting in the morning sun and rapidly growing in size.

Within minutes Robin entered the outskirts of Jump City, a shadow being cast over him from a strip of four story buildings. He snapped the front wheel of the R-Cycle to the right, bringing it sharply around a corner and narrowly avoiding a blue van. Robin steadily kept the motorcycle over the dashed white lines, tearing past long rows of cars that blurred together into a melange of colours.

Robin soared out into the middle of an intersection in a leftwards arch, his left knee barely avoiding contact with the concrete the turn was so sharp, and straightened out once he was on Clement Boulevard. A slow moving eighteen-wheeler forced Robin to awkwardly jerk the R-Cycle to the right immediately, and a red sports car that was obscured by the truck thrust him still further to the right and nearly up onto the sidewalk. Regaining full control, and with a clear path ahead of him, Robin pushed his motorcycle to its limit.

Approaching Wilks Avenue, Robin saw the T-Car blaze around one of the corners onto Clement with its tires squealing at an ear splitting intensity, coming to a full stop uncannily quickly just beyond the crossroad. Robin twisted the R-Cycle sideways and applied his own brakes through the intersection, leaving thick streaks on the pavement and stopping behind the T-Car, a puff of smoke swirling out from both tires. Screeching cars and long drawn horns filled the area upon the arrival of the Titans with the sudden blockage on one of the city's main thoroughfares. Vehicles were immediately jammed together in the confined space found throughout the congested streets of the financial district.

"Where is he?" Robin shouted, already off his bike and looking around.

The driver's door on the T-Car swung open and Cyborg stepped out. "This is where he was spotted, but I don't see any signs that he's been here."

"I can sense him," Raven said, appearing from the passenger side of Cyborg's prized ride. "Cinderblock is here."

An explosion of green erupted atop one of the skyscrapers before them, reverberating through the air and tossing out bits of metal and brick.

"Starfire's up there!" Robin screamed.

Frightened pedestrians fled the scene, shouting and pushing every step of the way in a maddened panic. Despite the frequent occurrence of alarms and attacks in the region, the populace had proved unable to adjust to that reality and remain calm and controlled during those situations. Order could sometimes become the most foreign concept to Jump City's inhabitants.

Reacting with tremendous speed, Raven whipped her right arm forward, producing a concave shield of dark energy above an elderly man a mere fraction of a second before a tumbling gnarled fragment of brick would have crushed him. Instead, it harmlessly bounced off the arched protection and rattled against the pavement.

Small chunks of twisted metal sprayed the sidewalk in front of the tall office building as the remaining individuals left the immediate vicinity. Dents appeared in the aluminium roofs of parked cars from the steel and glass that rained down, followed by a spiralling jagged shard of metal that cleanly sliced through the windshield of a silver Mercedes CLS and impaled itself into the black leather seat. Cyborg stared at the damaged vehicle with a forlorn look covering his face. "That's just horrible in so many ways," he said quietly.

Robin cocked his head toward the T-Car. "Raven, get us up there."

Raven rose off the street and extended her arms out, flipping her palms up. Two flat ovals appeared beneath Robin and Cyborg, expanding in size and taking them steadily upward behind Raven. Another green burst appeared above them during their ascent, enveloping the top several floors in that colour, followed by a deafening bellow.

Drawing nearer to the rooftop, a massive green tail extending out from the edge became visible, and it was violently snaking back and forth. Raven rose above the roof with Cyborg and Robin hovering at her sides, stopping her ascent and staring at the backside of the mighty tyrannosaurus rex before them which was blocking the bulk of Cinderblock. The building itself rumbled with each step of the two heavyweights, cracks and fractures forming in the stone roof underfoot.

Beast Boy's serrated teeth glinted in the morning sun and saliva was hurled outward from his gaping jaw, which pressed forward and snapped shut mere inches from the stone goliath's thick arm. Cinderblock savagely clamped one of his cold hands onto the flesh of Beast Boy's mouth, restricting it from opening and painfully forcing his head sideward, straining his neck to its agonizing limit.

Cyborg fiercely cried out and leapt from the black oval he stood on, upraising his right arm and peeling his fingers back, leaving a dark hole in their place. Bright blue light spewed out from the sonic cannon while he remained airborne, deluging forward on a straight trajectory and striking against the concrete monstrosity's right shoulder, jerking his upper body backward slightly.

"Beast Boy! Coming from behind!" Robin screamed, propelling himself across the gap to the rooftop and closing his hand on his utility belt. He touched down softly and whipped his right arm outward in a wide arc, loosing an explosive disk. The tyrannosaurus rex shrank in on itself in the span of a heartbeat, its jaw condensing into a tiny beak, its heavy tail disappearing, its muscular legs shrinking to mere talons and feathered wings jutting out in place of arms. Beast Boy whipped his wings once, pushing himself upward on the wind and away from Cinderblock as the flat disk slammed into his chest. A flash of light overtook the leviathan for a moment, followed by a rush of smoke and bright flames.

A thick dark cloud filled the air and Robin remained crouched with his muscles tensed, bracing himself for movement. It came with a parting of the smoke as Cinderblock burst through, driving a mammoth fist downward. Robin lunged to the side, landing on an outstretched left hand that he used to further his momentum, twisting his body up and over and landing on his feet once more. The colossus' fist smashed through the concrete roof, leaving a contorted hole and sending a terrible shockwave outward that rattled the bones in Robin's legs.

Starfire swooped down with emerald orbs surrounding her slender hands, while Raven bent her elbow and brought her arm back, opening her fist and revealing a small black circle in her palm that grew exponentially. Floating beside each other, the two girls shot their arms forward, releasing a deadly torrent of energy that buffeted Cinderblock, surging over his torso and shoving him back several metres.

Beast Boy arched downward and morphed back to his normal form, landing to Robin's right, while Raven and Starfire fell from the air onto the rooftop between Robin and Cyborg. Cinderblock firmly pressed his titanic feet down to prevent reeling backward any farther after receiving the last volley.

"What's Cinderblock doing here?" Robin demanded.

"Perhaps he was sent by Slade," Starfire replied.

The prodigious creature tightly clenched his fists and leaned forward, opening his mouth in a deafening roar of anger. Staring at his foe, Robin calculatingly surveyed the battlefield high above the streets that they now stood on. The building was undergoing a vertical expansion, and reddish-brown coloured metal pillars and beams rose half a dozen stories behind Cinderblock on the farther half of the roof, towering above the Titans. A large, bright yellow crane was perched at the edge of this construction zone, stretching upward more than one hundred feet.

"Bring him down," Robin ordered. "Titans, go!"

The Boy Wonder dashed forward, reaching behind his back and retrieving his staff, which snapped outward on both ends. Cinderblock wildly threw his fist at the approaching attacker, but Robin gracefully sidestepped it and flipped into the air, landing on the back of the concrete hand. Robin immediately leapt upward off Cinderblock's fist before the giant could react, smacking the side of his head with a horizontal swing of his staff.

With a loud whoosh of air, Cyborg's left hand shot outward and looped around Cinderblock's left wrist, the thick cable becoming taut as Cyborg fought to hold him in place. Dark energy wrapped over Cinderblock's other wrist, firmly encapsulating the majority of his forearm. Together Raven and Cyborg fiercely struggled to keep Cinderblock contained. The blue sections of Cyborg's exterior grew brighter from the tremendous exertion and he gritted his teeth, while the muscles in Raven's arms tightened and her forehead became sticky with small beads of sweat.

Starbolts exploded against Cinderblock's exposed torso from Starfire, who hurled them forward while still on her feet. Closing her fists, she rose up from the rooftop and streaked forward, pulling her right arm backward in anticipation of a strong strike.

Cinderblock bellowed in anger and whipped his left arm above his head, viciously tugging Cyborg forward and off the roof. Cyborg felt weightless for a moment, his stomach twisting and lurching as he soared upward, and then Cinderblock smashed his arm forward again, loosening the cable around his large wrist and propelling Cyborg downward out of the air. He crashed onto the rooftop harshly, bouncing once and leaving a radial indentation.

Unable to slow her approach, Starfire's eyes widened in horror until the very moment Cinderblock's open palm violently smashed into her. Starfire's vision blurred and she was immediately disoriented, unaware of the tremendous speed she was travelling at until she struck the glass of a neighbouring building. It crumbled against her immense force, breaking inward into tiny shards and splinters that were tossed about the large room. The glass, thick as it was, failed to slow her velocity, and Starfire tumbled and bounced off the tiled floor in turbulent rolls, crashing through rows of cubicles, wooden desks and computers. Acting like individual barriers, the furnishings brought a cessation to her erratic rotations, and she slid to a stop across the smooth tile on her side, covered in small bits of wood and other debris. She coughed up a puff of dust and then slowly climbed back to her feet, using the remaining half of a cubicle to steady herself.

----------------

The sound of shattering glass rang in Raven's ears. With energy still flowing from her hands to Cinderblock, she yanked her arms down to her waist, pulling the colossus' arm forward and bringing his upper body with him. Letting the energy connecting the two dissipate, Raven shot a thin blast out from the palm of her other hand. The black streak travelled low across the rooftop, arcing upward directly underneath Cinderblock and thrusting him off his feet.

A wide green triceratops, with black stripes running along its back, charged past Raven, causing the rooftop to shake as each massive five-toed foot came down. The two thick horns jutting out from the top of its head crashed into Cinderblock, who was only beginning to return to his feet, flipping him backward forcefully.

The stone monstrosity reacted with surprising speed, twisting to face Beast Boy and slamming a fist into the side of his head. The triceratops lurched in the opposite direction, losing its balance and toppling over onto its side. Having become disoriented, Beast Boy could no longer concentrate enough to hold his form, and the triceratops vanished inward, leaving the changeling lying groggily on the rooftop.

Cinderblock balled his hands into fists and raised them high over his head, preparing to pound down on the small human before him. Out of his peripheral vision he could see Robin casting his arm forward, and only very faintly something reflected the sunlight before an explosive disk struck Cinderblock's face. The giant stumbled backward clutching at his face with his hands, thin wisps of smoke rising up from between his fingers.

The shockwave of the explosion rippled against Beast Boy, snapping him out of his daze. His muscles rapidly expanded, dense dark green hair covered his skin, and two fangs hung from the top of his mouth alongside a row of blunt teeth. Pounding his chest with two large hands and bellowing, the gorilla leapt forward and slammed one of its fists into Cinderblock's square chest, knocking him back farther.

The gorilla immediately shrank in size and landed on four very thin legs, with most of its hair receding and spots appearing throughout its body. A discharge of azure energy from the wide barrel of Cyborg's sonic cannon clouted Cinderblock's stomach, allowing the small cheetah to dart away. Three more blasts burst against the exterior of the goliath, who angrily howled and charged forward.

Robin twirled his staff in front of him and meant the giant's charge, tightly clenching his weapon. Leaping from the rooftop, Robin twisted his arms back to gain maximum momentum for his strike, releasing the built up power at the very moment Cinderblock fiercely swung the back of his left hand outward. The staff flew from Robin's hands and he felt a strong wind against his back, only too aware that he was soaring backward. Steel beams whipped by in all directions as Robin passed through the building's extension, narrowly missing a lethal collision.

Emerging on the other side, Robin was now plummeting downward headfirst, watching his legs shake uncontrollably in front of his face. Floor after floor rushed past him, blurrily casting his reflection in the exterior glass of the office building. He frantically ripped the grappling hook from his belt and pointed it between his legs at the rapidly shrinking beams above, tightening his grip before firing.

The arc shot upward with a loud pop, pulling the long cord with it, and snagged around one of the higher steel girders, jerking Robin to a fierce stop and thrusting his arms and torso back above his legs. With the cord instantly taut Robin swung forward at the building, lifting his feet in front of him to brace against the impact. He flicked one of his thumbs and immediately the small device retracted the cord, which swiftly pulled Robin higher.

Sounds of starbolts and dark energy came from the rooftop, and when Robin rose above the top of the building he could see Starfire and Raven overhead, diving toward Cinderblock and unleashing salvos. Robin let go upon reaching the top of the extension, falling several feet and landing softly on one of the horizontal beams five stories above the fray. Perching himself on the narrow beam for a moment, he leapt forward and gracefully cart wheeled off another one, dropping several levels in the process. Holding his open hands out, Robin used them to propel himself past one more, coming to a stop atop one of the girders along the edge of the extension.

Below him Cyborg dived to the side to avoid a wild swing from Cinderblock, coming up out of his roll firing a long blue streak. The monster shrugged off the blasts and lunged forward with the fingers on one of his titanic hands outstretched, enclosing Cyborg's right leg. Cinderblock whipped his arm around in a wide circle and released his grip, sending Cyborg tumbling through the air. He crashed into the large crane midways up, twisting and contorting the metal, and then fell to the rooftop spinning end over end.

Robin filled his hands with small silver spheres and leapt off the girder, tossing them downward. Small puffs of fire and smoke littered Cinderblock's face and chest, momentarily blinding the juggernaut. Coming down with his leg firmly straightened, the sole of Robin's boot struck Cinderblock under his left eye. Robin landed softly on the rooftop in a crouched position, watching the rock behemoth in front of him regain his footing.

Horrible screeching resounded in Robin's head at an ear piercing intensity and he turned around in time to see the crane begin to buckle. It slowly wobbled from side to side, lurching more violently at its very top, and then collapsed. The crane toppled forward, smashing through the steel girders with a shower of sparks. Metal shards and entire beams were tossed outward like an explosion, and Robin's eyes widened in horror and he scrambled to his feet, desperately diving away from the dangerous projectiles crashing into the roof all around him.

From the far side of the building Raven stared at the crane, under tremendous strain and pressure, slowly slip off the edge of the rooftop and plunge toward the streets. She quickly created a whirling black circle beneath her and disappeared into it. Another circle appeared on the exterior of the building and she shot out, immediately looking upward at the falling crane that was now above her.

With her eyes glowing white magnificently, Raven thrust her arms up and dark energy rushed from her palms and encased the entire crane, bringing it to a stop in the air. She groaned under the weight of the construct and flew upward, steadily pushing the crane higher. Raven cautiously placed it atop one of the surrounding buildings and ensured it was secure before whipping herself around and streaking back to the others.

Buried beneath a pile of steel, Cyborg heaved his shoulders and pushed his arms out, cracking through the girders and throwing them aside. He shifted his attention to Cinderblock in the middle of the rooftop, who was trying to hit a very nimble and agile Robin, while a woolly, green ram with thick curling horns smashed into his back and then slipped away before the hulking creature could turn around. Cyborg looked down at the beams lying at his feet and picked one up, firmly grasping it in his right hand. Holding it over his shoulder, he pulled back and thrust the beam like a javelin, which soared forward across the rooftop perfectly and crashed against the intended target.

A blood-curdling scream echoed through the air, overwhelming all other sounds. Robin stared across the rooftop at Raven, paralysed with fear and terror stricken as he watched her. She was clutching at her head and her entire body trembled violently; flashes of black cascaded around her body intensively and then vanished altogether seconds after forming. The screams trailed off and Raven hung still for a moment, and then fell from the sky. Her body was completely limp when she collapsed against the rooftop roughly, crumpling into a small heap.

"_Raven!"_ Robin screamed, feeling his heart beating dangerously quickly.

Cinderblock growled and began moving at Raven. She shook slightly from the vibration sent out by each of his prodigious footsteps.

"_Starfire, protect Raven!"_ cried Robin, himself too far away to intercept the creature.

Starfire plunged out of the air screaming and slammed one of her fists into Cinderblock's chest, causing a shockwave of energy to burst outward. She continued forward, punching him ferociously in his chest and face repeatedly and driving him away from Raven. Cinderblock swung his own fist at the small girl but she was much faster, viciously punching the stone fist in the very middle as it came at her and propelling his arm back. Starfire wound her arm up and sucked a huge quantity of air into her lungs, and then unleashed her full strength with a tremendous exhale, leaving a large crack in Cinderblock's chest. Hovering at a height of several metres, her eyes began to glow emerald.

Robin slid to a stop beside Raven and lifted her head up. "Come on, Raven, wake up." With his other hand he gently stroked her soft cheek. Her closed eyelids were rapidly twitching and her chest rose and fell faintly, but she did not respond. "Please, Raven. _Please_."

Shrieking with anger, Starfire shot bright green from her eyes at Cinderblock's face, burning his eyes and blinding the creature even as he howled in pain.

Cyborg was now bent over Raven alongside Robin, running his fingers over her heart and pulse.

"What's wrong with her?" Robin asked, having great difficulty getting the words past the panicky lump in his throat.

"I have no idea," Cyborg replied, baffled by her. "It's like she just went unconscious in the air."

The green changeling landed softly between Starfire and Cinderblock and instantly seemed to burst apart. Spikes lined both his sides and thick, flat plating quickly covered his entire back, while a massive tail with a blunt, rounded end extended out behind him. The bulky ankylosaurus steadied itself low to the ground and transferred all of its weight into one savage stroke of its tail, pounding Cinderblock onto his back. He did not move again.

"Is she okay?" Starfire asked quietly.

"I don't know," Cyborg replied, shaking his head. "But we've got to get her back to the Tower if I'll have any chance of figuring it out."

"And what about him?" Beast Boy asked, pointing his thumb over his shoulder at the rock giant.

"Leave him," Robin quickly ordered, regaining his composure. "Our first priority is Raven. Starfire, get her down to the T-Car. Beast Boy, bring Cyborg down too and then fly back up for me. I'll notify the police. Move."

Starfire carefully picked Raven up in her arms and flew off the roof down to the streets, with a winged pterodactyl clutching Cyborg in its talons immediately behind. Robin fumbled to pull his communicator off the belt around his waist, trying to control the nervous shaking in his fingers—at least enough to flip it open and contact the prison.

He was not going to wait around atop the building with Cinderblock, which was a dramatic shift in his priorities. Never before had Robin not ensured himself that a criminal was apprehended by the authorities, whether remaining at the scene or making escape impossible for his adversary. That was not to happen today though, because he needed to be at Raven's side doing whatever was necessary. He loved her too much to act in any other way.

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So let me tell you, I think I totally exhausted my vocabulary coming up with alternatives to 'big creature.' You have no idea how hard it was getting to find new ways to describe Cinderblock by the end of that chapter.

I love reviews so very much, and I'm thrilled with everyone who's left one so far. If you enjoyed anything about this, let me know about it!

Oh, and now the suspenseful close: Will Raven be okay? And what exactly is happening to her?


	3. Memories, Painful and Joyous

Ah, chapter 3. I was super thrilled with the last chapter, but there's just something about this one that I really, really enjoy. There's a dream sequence (which is italicized, so no one has to guess when it happens) later on, but I thought I'd tell you briefly about it so no one is confused. Raven has it, and she's dreaming about an actual conversation she had a while ago—she doesn't make anything up about it. Oh, and the very beginning of the chapter is a flashback that will become significant later on, but no one is reminiscing about it. Now without any further babbling, here's chapter 3:

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The sky was a pale yellowish-orange and a low hanging mist swirled through the air. Raven's little hands tightly grasped her mother's white robe and one of Arella's slender hands was placed protectively on her daughter's shoulder, keeping Raven close to her body.

Azar, High Priestess of Azarath, stood several metres in front of the pair, her ceremonial white robes flowing magnificently over her body. An intricately detailed veil hung over her face, obscuring her appearance and giving the look of solemnity.

Standing before her were twenty men and women wearing only simple brown garments, having had their Azarathian robes confiscated. They were at the very edge of Azarath, at the point where the rocky plain abruptly ended, becoming an empty void. Yet they stood proud, even arrogantly, staring at the large crowd surrounding them with contempt.

Azar raised her hand. "Acheron, step forward."

One man at the centre of the group came forward. Raven's grip immediately tightened and the small child buried her face into her mother out of fright.

"You stand accused of high treason," announced Azar. "Your conspiracy against the peace of Azarath and the safety of all its inhabitants is of the greatest severity. For this, I am casting the Followers of Scath from this city and its very dimension. All of you before me are henceforth banished to an uninhabited plain, where you will live out the rest of your days."

Azar brought her hands together in front of her chest, keeping one palm slightly higher than the other, but ensuring they did not touch. She closed her eyes and chanted, "Azarath, Coman, Gayla." White energy flowed between her palms and her eyes shot open again, glowing a wondrous white that easily penetrated her veil and illuminated much of the surrounding area. The energy sprung from her hands in one massive flash of light, rapidly expanding into a circle of surging white that passed over the heads of the Followers of Scath and descended to the ground behind them.

Pointing one long finger straight at the fully formed portal, Azar firmly stated, "Leave Azarath."

One by one the condemned marched into the portal until only Acheron remained. He stared into Raven's eyes, almost feeding on her terror, and smiled wickedly. Raven squealed softly and hid herself behind Arella.

Azar immediately stepped between them unflinchingly. Acheron held the smile on his face as he slowly turned and walked into the portal. The circular aura collapsed in on itself with a loud crack, leaving the wind as the only sound.

"It is at last done," Azar whispered.

Arella turned to face her frightened daughter and kneeled in front of her, placing their eyes at the same level. She held Raven's shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze. "Don't be afraid my child," she lovingly said. "Acheron is gone and will never return. He can no longer harm you."

----------

Raven opened her eyes and bright light streamed down at her, blurring her vision. She quickly closed them again and scrunched up her face. Slowly she began blinking and the haze in front of her gradually faded. Her back ached, even on the soft bed in the medical bay, and Raven moaned.

"Raven, are you okay?"

She turned her head and fully opened her eyes. "Hey Cyborg," she replied softly.

Warmth flowed through her shoulder when Robin placed his outstretched hand on it. "How do you feel?"

"My back hurts," she said softly. "What time is it?"

"Almost one in the morning," Robin replied. "You've been out for a good fifteen hours."

"What happened?" Raven asked.

"We were hoping you'd be able to tell us," Cyborg answered.

"I'm not sure. I remember we were fighting Cinderblock. There was a rush of pain, and then nothing else."

"We were most concerned for you," Starfire said, standing at the foot of the bed. "You screamed and fell out of the air."

Raven turned to look at Robin with a confused look on her face, but he nodded. "It's true. And there didn't seem to be any stimulus—you just grabbed at your head and fell."

"Can you think of anything that might help us understand what happened?" Cyborg asked. "Maybe something out of the ordinary?"

Raven shook her head. "No, there's nothing." She paused and furrowed her eyebrows. "Well, there is one thing, but I can't see how it's connected."

Starfire leaned a bit closer. "What was it?"

"It's just something strange that happened last night. I had a really upsetting dream."

"Could it have affected you in some way?" Robin inquired. "If something upset you maybe it briefly pushed your emotions or your body to a breaking point."

"I don't know. But it's just the only thing that I can think of that's out of the ordinary."

"Well, physically you're fine," Cyborg started. "Your back might be stiff for a little while, but you're fortunate after that fall of yours. I think your body naturally healed itself as much as it could—"

"Wonderful news," Starfire inserted.

"—but I think it's best if you stay here for the next day, so that I can run some tests and monitor you."

Raven nodded. "I'll stay."

"I wasn't really asking for your permission, Rae, but it's good to know I won't have to fight you on this," Cyborg said with a smile.

Raven gave him a sarcastic smile and rolled her eyes with a sigh.

"I'll be back a little later to check up on you," Cyborg said, placing his clipboard on one of the tables in the room and walking out the door.

"You must be hungry by now, Raven. And you should probably get some food in you to keep your strength up because I know your body's been through a lot today. Would you like me to make you something?"

Raven turned to look up at Robin and smiled. "I'd love that. What'd you have in mind?"

"I was thinking you could go for an omelette."

She smiled and said, "No bacon bits."

"Yeah, I remember. Heck, you even got me off them." Robin walked to the end of the bed, stopping beside Starfire. "Try to get some rest."

Raven smiled and wiggled slightly in the bed, finding herself a comfortable position.

"I am happy you are okay, Raven," Starfire said, her eyes full of energy and joy.

She and Robin turned away and the medical bay doors whooshed open in front of them. Robin gave Raven one last smile before stepping out and letting the doors slide shut behind him.

----------

Beast Boy leaned against the wall in the monitoring room directly beside the doors to the adjoining medical bay. His heart was beating furiously and his face was damp from sweat. He wanted to be in there with Raven and the others, but Beast Boy knew that for the time being he was not welcome. That thought crushed him. All he could think about was the last conversation he had with her.

"_You're so selfish, Beast Boy."_

He let his head drop. Anxiety was crawling through his entire body, overwhelming him.

"_I'm not ready to forgive you."_

Beast Boy could not help but think of the possibility that something was deeply wrong with Raven, and that the words she had said to him that morning might have been the last she would ever say. The thought burrowed into his mind and he found himself unable to dislodge it.

"_I'm not ready to forgive you."_

Those words were replayed in his mind over and over again. He wanted more than anything to go in there and tell her how sorry he was and how much he cared for their friendship.

The doors beside him suddenly slid open and Beast Boy immediately leaped up from the wall with his eyes wide open.

"Whoa there, BB," Cyborg said, nearly jumping back. "You trying to freak me out or something?"

"How is she?" he asked, speaking so quickly that the words merged together into one incoherent mass.

"Hubba who now?"

Beast Boy took a deep breath. "How is she? Is Raven going to be okay?"

"Dude, why weren't you in there?"

Beast Boy took a firm step forward, a stern look spread over his face. "Is she going to be okay?"

"Hard to say really," he replied. Seeing Beast Boy tense up, Cyborg reassuringly said, "Don't worry, she seems fine. But we just don't know what happened."

"So she's not hurt?"

"Doesn't look like it. She's awake and remembers what happened just before, but she's as lost as we are about what it is that exactly happened."

Beast Boy let the tremendous weight ease off his shoulders and sighed with relief.

"Seriously though, why weren't you in there with us? Is everything okay with you?"

"It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"You know BB, aside from being your best friend and just knowing something's wrong with you, I also have a lie detector in my left arm."

BB weakly smiled. "We're not exactly getting along. But we'll sort through it. I just didn't think she'd want me in there with her right now."

Another burst of air escaped from the doors as they opened, and Starfire and Robin stepped into the monitoring room.

"I'm going to make Raven some food," Robin said. "Cyborg, you want to give me a hand with it?"

Cyborg shrugged. "Sure. I'm getting hungry anyways."

"I am most tired," Starfire remarked. "I think I will go to sleep."

Cyborg and Starfire left the monitoring room, but Robin turned back around to look at Beast Boy, who was standing motionless and staring at the medical bay doors.

"Everything alright with you?"

Beast Boy nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay. Don't worry about me."

"Raven's fine for now. She just needs rest, so it's okay for us to leave her."

"I know," Beast Boy responded. After one last lingering look, he slowly turned away and walked out into the hallway alongside Robin.

----------

Raven stared up at the ceiling in silence. Despite her confusion and trepidation, she decided trying to sleep would be the best thing to do. She rolled over to one side and curled her legs up, slowly closing her eyes. Suddenly she found herself more tired than she had thought, and her body began to relax. A wave of calm settled over Raven and she quickly fell asleep, hoping she'd dream a pleasant dream.

----------

_Raven walked into the main room from the hallway, looking around at all the open panels and exposed circuitry. She saw Robin off to the right in the half finished kitchen and headed over to him, minding the large collection of power tools lying on the floor. _

"_What's up with Beast Boy?" she asked. "He just hit me in the head with a nerf ball."_

"_Hey Raven," Robin said, looking over his shoulder. "What game was he playing this time?"_

"_I don't even know," she replied, shaking her head. "He was just kicking it up and down the hallway." Raven slid into the kitchen and leaned against one of the counters. "The Tower's coming along really well though."_

"_You're telling me. If there's one thing I'll say about Cyborg, it's that he's pretty amazing with tools."_

_Raven poked her head over Robin's shoulder. "What are you making?"_

"_Just an omelette. It's comfort food for me."_

"_I've never had an omelette before. Any good?"_

_Robin turned around and looked down at Raven. "You've never had an omelette before? Then I'm going to make you one."_

"_I don't normally eat much in the morning."_

"_I'll make you a small one. Trust me, you'll like it."_

_Raven sighed. "Okay, go ahead," she relented._

_Robin smiled and quickly grabbed a few more eggs out of the fridge. "You know, Raven, we haven't had a chance to talk, just the two of us."_

"_I'm not one for much talk. Really, I appreciate you guys letting me be a part of all this, but I know I don't fit in."_

"_What are you talking about? You're just as much a part of this team as any of us."_

"_I have nothing in common with anyone though. Starfire's taken a liking to the whole 'girly girl' thing and Cyborg and Beast Boy play the stupidest games and just goof around. I don't want to do any of that."_

_Robin smiled. "You don't have to share stuff like that to fit in. Those things are probably going to change soon enough anyways. Starfire will find something else about Earth to get excited about, and Cyborg and Beast Boy might mature."_

_Suddenly Raven found herself smiling too._

"_I'm just saying you shouldn't worry about that stuff. You're our friend, Raven. We want you to be a Titan. And we don't care if you're interested in painting your nails or playing video games. But we do want to get to know you."_

"_Thanks, Robin."_

"_You can start by telling me where you're from."_

_She looked away from Robin. "I'm sorry, but I can't talk about it. Not yet. I haven't exactly had a good life, and I don't want to think about it."_

"_I understand. For a long time now I've had nothing but painful memories. And most of it I don't want to talk about either."_

"_It'll be a while before I'm ready to open up."_

"_Then we already have something in common. But if there's anyone that I'm willing to open up to, it's you and the others."_

"_I hope I feel the same way when the time comes." She paused for a moment, watching Robin carefully prepare the eggs. "Can I tell you something?"_

"_Of course you can," he replied._

"_I, I've never had a friend before. I know it sounds stupid. But that's what makes me so excited to be here with everyone, even though I'm so different. For the first time in my life, I feel like people actually want me around."_

"_I've never had a real friend either. And all this time I thought I needed to be on my own, and I preferred it that way. But now I know the only thing I've ever actually needed is a family. We all need each other."_

"_Thank you for accepting me, Robin. I can't tell you how much it means to me."_

"_I'm glad you're with us," he said. "Now, what do you want on this omelette?"_

_Raven watched him reach to his right and pick up a narrow plastic container and slowly begin to twist it open. "Are those bacon bits?" she asked._

"_Yep. I love these things."_

"_Yuck. Don't put any of those on mine. Do you have any idea how bad they are for you?"_

_Robin stopped and held the container up, staring at it intently. "Really?"_

"_There are so many chemicals in those little things. Artificiality at its worst."_

_Thoughtfully raising an eyebrow, Robin almost looked sad. "But they're so good on omelettes."_

"_Do we have any vegetables?"_

"_Yeah. Cyborg sent Beast Boy out to pick up a bunch of meat, but he came back with only vegetables for some reason, so there are plenty."_

"_Good. I'll chop up some green peppers and onions." She turned and walked toward the fridge, but stopped after only a few short steps. "And Robin…when I am ready to open up, you'll be the first to know."_

_----------_

Cyborg stared into the fridge unhappily. "Man, Beast Boy refused to buy me my meat again, didn't he? That little green thing drives me crazy sometimes." Cyborg settled for the remains of a sandwich from Subway. He shut the door firmly and stood up. "I buy him that disgusting tofu stuff, the least he could do is pick up a 32 ounce steak once in a while. I'm not being unreasonable here, am I?"

Robin was leaning against the counter with his arms crossed, staring down at the floor. Finally he looked up and said, "What exactly did Raven's charts say?"

Cyborg shook his head. "That's the thing, dude. They didn't say anything."

"Nothing at all? No problems or anything that seemed strange?"

"Every test I ran says she's perfectly fine."

"But she's not fine. You saw what happened to her."

"I know. And frankly it worries me."

"Do you have any theories?"

"I wish I did. Physically and mentally, Raven's always been different than each of us. Her powers, especially her mental ones, are borderline unstable, which makes it all the more difficult for me to detect anything that's wrong. It took me long enough to figure out what a normal readout for her mind looks like."

"But you can detect if something's wrong, right?"

"I should be able to. But I just don't know with her. I have no idea how frequent deviations from what I perceive as 'normal' happen. It might be impossible for me to detect."

"Then what can we do if something is really wrong with her?"

Cyborg sighed deeply. "We hope it can be found before she's seriously hurt. In the meantime I'm going to run tests on her every couple of hours. Once I have a few results I can start comparing them. Right now that's probably our only bet."

Robin nodded. "Hopefully whatever is going on with her isn't serious." He paused and pulled the eggs out of the refrigerator. "I'm just going to whip up an omelette for Raven, but then I'll stay in the room with her. I'll be sure to call you if there's any difference in her."

"Sounds good," Cyborg replied, heading toward the doors with sandwich in hand. "I think I might try to get a little shut eye. But I'll be in to check up on her in a while."

Robin cracked an egg open and sighed. There were so few times he felt helpless, but this was most definitely one of them. As much as he hoped Raven was alright, he could not shake the feeling of dread that had settled in the pit of his stomach. He feared she was far from okay, and that thought gnawed at his mind.

He rushed to get the omelette done for Raven; Robin needed to be in that room with her. He doubted that he could truly relax, but at least if he was sitting on the side of her bed he would not be wracked with such nervousness. Robin stared down at the simmering yellow blob and did his best attempt at willing it to cook faster.

----------

A short time later Robin was briskly walking down the hallway to the medical bay, with a small omelette on a plate in one of this hands and a glass of orange juice in the other.

As he approached the end of the hall, a chilling scream echoed through the corridor, reverberating in Robin's ears. His eyes widened in horror and he burst forward in a full run, letting the plate and glass slip from his hands. When they shattered against the floor Robin was already ten paces down the hall and dashing through the doors to Raven.

He frantically emerged in the medical bay to see Raven violently writhing around on her bed, slamming her body up and down, her arms and legs convulsing. Though her eyes were closed, Raven wore a furious expression on her face and jerked her head back and forth. Robin clutched at Raven's shoulders, pressing down with his entire weight in an effort to bring her under control.

"Raven, stop! I'm here, you're okay!"

Her savage spasms continued, and she aggressively twisted and shook. "Get out of my head!" she screamed. "You won't control me!"

Robin exerted more strength with his arms, but it did little to steady Raven. He whipped his head toward the door. _"Cyborg!"_

Black flashes erupted throughout the room, snapping medical wires and tossing fragments of metal and brick in all directions. A slender streak of energy sheared through the other bed in the room, cleanly severing it into two halves.

Robin leaned closer, fighting to keep Raven from injuring herself. "Raven, listen to me! You're safe, no one is after you!"

His words were barely audible over the sound of one electronic monitor exploding behind the bed, raining sparks and glass shards down upon Robin.

"Get out of my head!" 

The air swirled around the room in a circle, rapidly building in intensity and forcing Robin to keep his head down. Soon the wind was furious, strongly pressing on his chest and wildly throwing his cape upward. He fell against the side of the bed, still firmly grasping Raven's shoulders, and clenched his teeth in pain as slivers of broken glass sliced his arms and face.

The small wooden table beside Robin rattled in the blasting gusts and was then ripped from the floor and flung ferociously across the room, sliding along the far wall and then whipping back through the air toward him, curving at the last moment and smashing into a dozen pieces against the wall several metres away.

Robin fought hard to pull himself closer to Raven, struggled to raise part of his body onto the bed alongside her, still tightly holding her shoulders. "Raven!" he screamed over the torrent of wind. "Everything is going to be okay!" A shard of concrete slammed against his forehead, thrusting his head back and leaving a thick red line. Robin winced and painfully lowered his head forward through the squall, bringing it right beside Raven's ear. "I'm right here, Raven! I'm with you!"

Slowly the tempest faded away and the violent, tumultuous shaking came to an end. Robin's cape fell back over his shoulders and he found relief from the pressure that had built on his chest. Raven's entire body twisted once more, but this time Robin succeeded in holding her against the mattress, and she lay still.

His grip remained tight on Raven's shoulders, so overcome by shock at what had just occurred that for a moment Robin could not move. Crimson moisture gathered at the bottom of the slice across his forehead, and then slowly slid downward, rounding the mask covering his eyes and dripping off his cheek to the floor.

Robin found himself sprinting out of the room, his legs seeming to act independently from the rest of him. He clamped onto the side of the open door and leaned out, opening his mouth and furiously screaming. _"Cyborg!"_ He was panting and gulped air into his lungs, having been unable to breathe during Raven's storm. _"Cyborg!"_

The word echoed down the corridor sonorously, but Robin heard nothing in return. His open mouth sucked more oxygen inward. _"Cyborg!"_

Robin turned away from the hall and rushed back to Raven's side. She looked perfectly peaceful, lying utterly still with her eyes closed and calmly breathing through her nose. The entire sight was hauntingly eerie. He stared at her face in an absolutely mesmerized manner, unable to take his eyes away from her. The entire room was littered with shrapnel and debris, yet Raven did not have one mark on her body. Robin peeled one of his gloves off and gently touched her cheek; it was warm.

Loud footsteps rang out behind him and Cyborg burst into the medical bay. "What's wrong?"

Robin turned to look Cyborg. "I don't know."

Cyborg surveyed the room and his one eye bulged outward. "What in the hell happened in here?"

"It was Raven. Something's happening to her."

Cyborg quickly bent over Raven, staring intently at her. "She looks just fine."

"She's not," Robin responded. "Raven did everything in this room while she was unconscious."

"I'll run some tests." Cyborg stood up and grabbed a thin silver instrument beside the bed, but immediately the wire connecting it to a square white monitor snapped off in his hand. "Damn it! Everything in this room's been torn apart." He threw the silver instrument to the floor and pressed four numbers into a small keypad on the wall. "Move her bed back from the wall. We're going to give her a full body scan."

Robin grasped the end of Raven's bed and pulled it several feet backward, watching a large square panel in the wall slide up. Through the opening sat a large white machine that slowly unfolded itself, coming out from the wall on a long, thick arm. At the end of the arm sat a shell that was more than six feet long and composed of numerous curved segments, almost resembling a massive ribcage. Adjusting itself over the bed, the machine gently lowered itself over Raven, and all the individual segments immediately locked together, sealing her off completely.

Cyborg inputted a five-digit combination into the keypad and a chorus of beeps emitted from the machine. Bright red and blue lights immediately appeared from underneath the device, running over Raven's body inside the shell from top to bottom. Each time one of the lights reached the end of the shell the machine let out a whirling noise, readjusting itself for another pass over Raven.

"While we're waiting for the scan to finish up, I'm going to clean that cut of yours on your forehead."

Robin did not even acknowledge that he had heard Cyborg. Instead, he stared at the contraption as it continued its scan. "What's happening to her?" he whispered.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

More mystery for everyone—how wonderful. I really hope everyone enjoyed that chapter, because I'm really very pleased with how it flowed and came together. Next chapter will have some answers though, so all of you won't be in the dark for too much longer.

But in the meantime, it looks as though Raven's trouble is becoming more serious. How will this affect the others? And what exactly does her past have to do with her current situation?


	4. Confessions

Ah, I'm finally back. I know it's been longer than what I said, but writing just hasn't been coming as naturally to me as normal, which is rather perplexing. This chapter is an excellent one (do I say that every time?), and there's another wonderful segment from Raven's past, which I really, really enjoy doing. Nothing like the past to open things up and expand on a story. Hope you all enjoy the read!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So what am I looking at?" Robin asked.

Cyborg stuck a bluish-grey tinged sheet of transparent film against a light box on one of the walls in the examining room adjacent to the medical bay. "This is the scan of Raven's brain that we just took. See this fuzzy, convoluted area in her mind?"

Robin could clearly identify the strange white area at the very back of her skull, which spread outward into the rest of her mind with short, intertwined tentacles. "Yeah."

"This is the chaotic region in her mind. It's the part I've never been able to truly understand and is impossible to analyse. Near as I can tell, there is some correlation between this area and any event Raven is unable to control. After Raven created those creepy crawlies in the Tower two Halloween's ago I took a scan of her mind and there had definitely been some reaction in this portion. It usually sits dormant, but at any moment it can just be triggered, sometimes even seemingly without cause. And if it does erupt," Cyborg paused, looking sternly at Robin, "there's little hope of anyone other than her being able to bring it to a stop. Not to mention that I have serious doubts she knows anything more about this region than I do."

"Which means she probably has no idea how to stop herself."

"Exactly. But I just don't know enough about it to say one way or another what might happen."

"And you think it's somehow having an effect on her now?"

Cyborg placed a second sheet up against the light. "This scan was taken several months ago. Notice anything different?"

"The white area is smaller."

Cyborg nodded. "It's growing."

Starfire, who was standing behind Robin, furrowed her eyebrows and stared at it quizzically. "What does this mean?"

Shaking his head, Cyborg replied, "That's the problem, it could mean anything. But it does tell us that today wasn't some freak occurrence—something serious is happening to her. What that exactly means is open to interpretation."

Sitting on the edge of a table along the far wall, Beast Boy uncomfortably stared at the scans. "There's gotta be something you can do to figure this out."

Cyborg turned around to look at him. "I wish there was, but there are just too many variables with Raven's mind. Right now I have no idea how to even approach this."

"But you're the only one who knows anything about this stuff," Beast Boy said, raising his voice.

"I don't even know why the hell she has this chaotic region, let alone what its significance is."

"You _have_ to do something."

"Everything's so simple to you, isn't it? This isn't like morphing into an animal. I can't just think of something and have it happen. This is complex, complicated stuff."

"Calm down, guys," Robin said. "It's late and we're all getting a little edgy."

"Robin is correct," added Starfire. "It has been a stressful day, but we are all concerned for our friend's well being."

Cyborg rubbed his forehead. "I'm sorry, B. It's just that anything I do to Raven has the potential of furthering the damage. Trust me when I say her chaotic region is not something I want to poke and prod."

"So what can we do for her?" Beast Boy asked.

"We can keep an eye on her. Someone needs to be in the room with Raven at all times. Other than that, there's nothing any of us can do right now without taking a dangerous risk."

Beast Boy hoped off the table. "I'll watch her first."

"I'm going to head back to my room and see if I can analyse these scans a little more," Cyborg said, plucking the sheets off the wall.

"Can I come with you?" Robin asked.

"If you want, sure."

"I just don't think I'll be able to fall asleep. And I'd like to be there when you make a discovery that can help Raven."

"I would like also to come," Starfire said.

"It's best if you try to sleep," Robin replied. "We need at least one of us to actually be alert."

Starfire sighed and nodded.

"Beast Boy, if anything changes with Raven hit the emergency button on your communicator," Robin said. "You need to get some sleep too though, so Starfire can take over watch in a few hours."

Beast Boy nodded and walked into the medical bay without saying a word.

Cyborg led the way down the corridors toward the sleeping quarters and stopped for a moment when Starfire slid her door open. "G'night, Star," he quietly said.

"Have a good rest," Robin added.

"Good night," she whispered back.

Upon entering his own room, Cyborg flicked on the lights, tossed the scans down on the nearest tables and turned on his computer. "I've got every one of Raven's scans here on my computer. Our best bet right now is probably just looking them over. Maybe we can find some sort of pattern."

"Has her mind ever shown anything like this before?"

"Her chaotic region has definitely fluctuated before, but the severity wasn't even close to what it is now. And on each of the other occasions the growth has been a temporary occurrence that would recede very quickly. Now it seems to be continual expansion." Cyborg clicked on the mouse a few times and two scans popped up beside one another. "Here, the scan on the left was taken one week before she created those freaky things on Halloween."

"The chaotic region's quite small."

Cyborg nodded. "That's generally its size most of the time. Now, the scan on the right was taken immediately after she regained her powers. The chaotic region is larger, but what do you notice?"

Robin squinted his eyes. "There's hardly any change at all. I might not have even noticed it was bigger if you hadn't told me."

"And that's what concerns me. On that Halloween, we all got a taste of how extraordinary her powers can be when she's not in control, yet there was barely a change in her chaotic region. Not to mention that it shrank to its normal size within another day."

Robin turned to pick up the scan that was taken less than an hour before. Holding it up next to the computer screen, he said, "Look at how large it is now."

Cyborg stuck his pointer finger on one of the tiny snakelike arms jutting out from the chaotic region. "These little things are also making me uneasy."

"Why's that?"

"Because I've never seen them before. Any time this portion of her mind has grown, it's made small progressions. Now it's rapidly expanded, and these little arms almost look like it's working its way through the rest of her brain."

"Like the chaotic region is taking over her mind?"

"As ridiculous as that sounds, yes."

"But what would cause it to do that?"

Cyborg shook his head. "That's the thing that makes this so difficult. I just have no idea whether or not the chaotic portion would need an outside influence, or if it sometimes acts on its own. Remember, we've only known her for a little over three years, so I have a relatively small time in her life to go by. She may not have had this region when she was younger, or it could have been four times as large when she was growing up."

"Does Raven know or remember anything about this from when she was younger?"

"Nope. She came to us without any prior knowledge. Either the Azarathians themselves didn't know about it, or they kept it secret from Raven."

"So this is little more than guesswork," Robin said solemnly.

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Do you think Trigon had some sort of effect on her?"

"I used to think that, but I'm beginning to doubt it. After Raven destroyed him, I insisted she have a scan done right away. My thinking was that without his influences the chaotic region might just dissipate. You can tell that didn't happen. In fact, there was absolutely no change afterward, and there still hasn't been."

"I guess we don't even know if this is common to some Azarathians."

"Actually, I doubt that," Cyborg replied. "Raven would have known something about this if it was common. Why else would it be kept from her?"

Robin paused for a moment. "When she was losing control back in the medical bay, it sounded like she was shouting at someone. She said, 'You won't control me,' and 'Get out of my head.' Do you think someone might be trying to take over her mind? Is that even possible?"

A deep look of concern was spread across Cyborg's face. "It's not impossible," he answered. "But there's just so much uncertainty with her."

----------

The room was so quiet. Raven lay absolutely still, her breathing so soft that it barely made a sound. Sitting a little ways from the bed, and with the exception of an occasional sigh, Beast Boy was likewise silent. Not too long before he had nervously fiddled with his fingers, but now he merely watched Raven. There was something soothing about her present calmness, as if she was perfectly okay and would wake up soon. Yet he also felt terribly unsettled by that same calmness, which was so in conflict with whatever pain she was experiencing.

Raven took a deep breath and her shoulders and chest rose briefly before she settled back against the mattress once more, her eyelids now twitching ever so slightly.

Beast Boy's eyes remained fixed on her. "All I want is for you to be okay."

----------

_Raven cradled the thickly bound tome against her chest, struggling to make it to the nearest table without dropping it. The book was heavy, but not so much that the small child was unable to carry it in her arms. Yet it slowly slid from her determined grasp, and Raven clenched her arms tighter, barely holding it above her thighs as she approached the table and successfully managed to place it down._

_She let out a little sigh of content. Raven was looking forward to reading that book, but just not yet. First she had to go find another. The little girl happily walked out of the main area and down a narrow aisle, all the while intently gazing up at the countless number of books, each sitting upon ornately carved wooden shelves. She ran her fingers along the spines of some of the books as she passed by and eagerly read the title of each one with wide eyes._

"_Hello young child."_

_Raven squeaked in surprise and whirled her head up and away from the rows of books. A tall man dressed in a beautiful white robe stood behind her, part of his face obscured by shadows cast from a combination of the high bookcases on either side of him and the hood pulled over his head. Raven instinctively took several tiny steps backward with each step forward that the man made, unable to take her eyes off the one feature she could identify—his frightening smile._

_A flicker of light fell upon him, and was just enough to illuminate the face underneath his cloak. "Looking for a good book, Raven?"_

"_Mommy says I need to stay away from you."_

_Acheron's smile widened. "Arella has it all wrong. I am the only one who will guarantee you reach your true potential."_

"_I'm not supposed to talk to you." She continued to quietly back away, keeping one outstretched arm against the bookcase to her right._

_He took one more step forward, easily keeping pace with the small girl. "You have nothing to fear. I only try to make your future less painful by preparing you for it."_

_Despite his words Raven remained scared and increased the number of steps away that she took. She trembled slightly and there was the faintest quiver in her eyes._

"_What has Azar told you about your destiny?"_

_Raven let out a tiny peep when she found her back pressed up against another bookcase at the very end of the aisle. While light glinted off Acheron's robe, his face remained in total darkness, even after he stopped directly underneath one of the glowing torches that hung from the bookcases on sparkling ropes._

"_She has kept it a secret from you, has she not?" Acheron asked. "She and all the others shield you from the truth, from your purpose. You were born for one reason."_

_Raven lowered her head but kept her gaze on Acheron, too afraid to look away. "What are you talking about?" she timidly asked._

"_Have you ever wondered why there is no father in your life?"_

"_He died before I was born. But mommy doesn't talk about him."_

"_That is far from the truth. Your father lives. And because of you, he will be able to reclaim his rightful place on Earth."_

_Though she was young, Raven could feel something sinister within Acheron. The little girl was unsure what she was sensing, but it made her skin crawl. Slowly she slid sideways along the bookcase, never taking her eyes off him._

_Without any indication of aggression, Acheron had suddenly grabbed Raven's wrist and was pulling her toward him. The small girl squirmed and twisted, but his grip was too tight. She dug her heels into the floor and used her other hand to try to pull free, clenching her teeth. The struggle was futile, and Acheron forcefully covered her mouth with his free hand, thrusting her backward and pinning her up against the bookcase._

_Acheron released her wrist and reached into the back of his cloak, his strength not allowing Raven to move an inch. Still she frantically ripped at the hand covering her mouth with her tiny hands, desperately attempting to dislodge him. It was to no avail, and Acheron yanked her away from the bookcase with the one hand that was over her mouth, holding her awkwardly in such a way that she was arched backward, staring up into his penetrating eyes._

_His other hand came out from his robe holding a small object, but Raven could not see what it was. She was utterly terrified and remained still, her breathing growing increasingly laboured. Acheron slowly reached behind Raven's head and firmly placed the object against the very back of her skull. Expecting the worst, Raven was surprised to find that it was rather smooth and cold, but did not allow her body to relax. Her eyes darted back and forth nervously and her fingers still clutched at Acheron's hand, no longer fighting him for the moment._

_Soon there was a tremendous rush of heat and the back of her skull burned. The heat intensified to an unbearably painful level and Raven's eyes widened and filled with tears. She tried to scream, but her mouth was still clamped shut. Tears poured from her eyes down her cheeks and her entire face was bright red. Her fingernails imbedded themselves deep into Acheron's hand, breaking the skin and allowing deep red to ooze forth, yet still he did not flinch._

_The agony seemed to last an eternity for Raven. Finally Acheron relinquished, callously letting her crumple to the floor._

"_Only now are you ready."_

_Raven tenderly curled up into a tiny ball, softly crying. Acheron's footsteps echoed only briefly while he walked away, leaving the whimpering of a small girl as the only sound._

_----------_

Starfire solemnly walked down the hallway toward the medical bay. Though she was exhausted, she had found it impossible to actually fall asleep. To her, the ability to sleep was dependent on joyful emotions—similar to her flight. One negative emotion could potentially interfere with her sleep patterns, though normally she could overcome such an emotion with some effort and sleep peacefully. Yet currently she did not want to sleep anyways, her possible inability to do so notwithstanding. Raven was one of her best friends, and Starfire refused to go to sleep without at least knowing how serious her affliction was.

There was a dejected mood in the Tower and the emotionally driven Starfire certainly felt it. When a fellow Titan was going through something so troubling it was difficult to find the focus needed to do anything. If only just the mystery of Raven's distress could be removed, a great weight would be lifted off each of their shoulders. For now though, all Starfire could do was anxiously wait…and hope.

The door to the medical bay silently slid open upon Starfire's approach and she stepped in with the lightest of footsteps. Beast Boy sat hunched over in a chair not far from the bed, and it seemed as though Raven had not moved at all.

Without lifting his head, Beast Boy said, "Is it already time for you to watch Raven?"

"No," Starfire replied. "I could not sleep, and thought I would stay with you and Raven." Starfire clasped her hands together in front of her. "Has there been any change?"

"Nope."

The Tamaranean took several steps toward Beast Boy. "Are you okay?"

Beast Boy turned his head, finally looking up at Starfire. "Huh?"

"You seem as though you are unwell."

"I'm just concerned for her," he answered, turning back to Raven.

"It appears to be more than that."

Several seconds went by before Beast Boy finally spoke up. "All we've done in the last week is argue. She wanted to help me deal with Terra. She tried to comfort me, but I told her to leave. I didn't want to listen." Beast Boy looked at Starfire again. "What's the last thing you said to her?"

Starfire thought for a moment, and was surprised that she could actually remember. "'I am happy you are okay.'"

"You want to know what one of the last things I said to her was? I said, 'Go away.' All Raven wanted to do was help me." Beast Boy shook his head and sighed.

Starfire placed her hand on his shoulder. "I am sure she has forgiven you."

"No, she hasn't. I tried to apologize to her, but she'd barely listen. And I can't blame her. I just feel so guilty, Star. And all I can think about is the possibility that I won't get to talk to her again. Right now the only thing I want is for her to be okay."

"We all do. And Raven will be okay. She has already overcome so much in her life." Starfire stepped over to the side of Raven's bed and stared down at her friend, just in time to see her begin to stir.

Raven kicked her right leg once before jerking her head from side to side. She murmured softly and then moaned, her eyes fluttering ever so slightly.

----------

Everything on the screen blurred together into one fuzzy, indistinguishable mass, forcing Robin to tightly close his eyes while he was still leaning over the computer. When the scans became no less blurry, he stood up and rubbed his forehead.

Cyborg swivelled around in his chair to look at Robin. "There's really nothing more we can do tonight. We're both exhausted." He paused and opened his mouth wide to let out a large yawn. "We need to sleep."

"No. We keep working. We have to figure something out."

"Neither of us can focus long enough to figure anything out."

"For Raven's sake we're going to have to focus."

"The sun's nearly up, man. We won't be able to do Raven any good if we can't process a thought. If we can just get a few hours of shuteye we'll be more alert."

Robin bit his lower lip in frustration, knowing full well Cyborg was right. Though he would never admit it, Robin recognized that his extreme determination could at times be detrimental or even damaging. If the proper, and least harmful, course of action were to occur, such times required greater concentration and consideration. "I just wish there was more we could do for her now."

"I know," Cyborg replied. "And we will figure all this out, but that's not going to happen until we get some—"

Cyborg's left eye flashed red four times in quick succession, just as Robin's communicator sharply buzzed, vibrating against his hip. Before the slightest thought had registered in Robin's mind his legs were already furiously pounding, leading him out to the hallway. When he rounded the first corner Cyborg had caught up to him, matching Robin stride for stride, and the pair continued at full speed around two more corners and down the long stretch that led to the medical bay.

To Robin, the doors that separated him from Raven slid open too excruciatingly slow, and he wedged himself through the moment they parted, with Cyborg only a second behind. The sight that greeted him upon entering her room was more than unexpected: Raven was sitting up in her bed cross legged, completely alert.

"Raven, you're awake," Robin said, quickly recovering from having been slightly shaken up. His voice was filled with a mixture of relief and joy. "When our communicators went off I was afraid something else had happened."

Cyborg stepped up to her bed. "How are you feeling, Rae?"

As if she had not even heard him, Raven looked over to Robin. "Did I do this?" she asked, pointing around the room.

"We said we would wait for you and Cyborg to arrive before we told her," Starfire remarked.

Robin slowly walked over to the side of the bed, with Raven's eyes following him every step of the way, and sat down on it. Finally Robin said, "Yes. You were unconscious when something happened to you."

"I've been going over your scans," Cyborg said. "And your chaotic region has grown significantly. Far more than on any other occasion."

Raven merely stared up at Cyborg without any changes in her facial expression, and she kept her hands folded together in her lap. Robin could see the tiniest quiver in her eyes however, and he knew she was desperately hiding her feelings.

"Raven, what happened to you?"

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in, appearing to be steadying herself. The others stared down at her in silence, and Raven lowered her own head, not wanting to look any of them in the eyes. "At first I had no clue what I was going through, but I know now. I didn't want to believe it, but there's no denying it any longer."

"What's happening?" Robin softly asked.

"Something horrible. And if he succeeds it will undo everything that each of you fought for."

"He?" Starfire inquired.

"Acheron," Raven replied.

Beast Boy frowned. "Who is he?"

"He was once a priest of Azarath."

"And what's he after?" Cyborg asked.

"Nothing less than the end of all things. He's after the complete annihilation of the Earth."

Robin stared forward with concern. "Does he have the power to make that possible?"

"By himself, no," Raven answered, finally looking up at the others. "But through me, he'll have the means to do so."

Lowering his eyebrows, Cyborg had a look of concern about him. "Hold on, what do you mean about undoing everything we've fought for?"

Raven sadly sighed. "There's a lot that each of you need to know…"

Robin comfortingly placed his hand on Raven's shoulder. "It's time for you to open up."

Raven allowed the comfort that came from Robin's hand to soothingly transfer into her body before beginning. "When I lived in Azarath the High Priestess was a woman named Azar. She was the granddaughter of the original Azar, the founder of the city, and for as long as I could remember was also my mentor. Fearful of the evil within me, she taught me to control my emotions and to suppress my feelings.

"When I was growing up, one of the priests was a man named Acheron. Azar was a tremendously intuitive woman and for a long time sensed a growing darkness around him. She could feel something sinister in him, however faint, which slowly began to coincide with a looming darkness in the entire city. It was this strange and intangible foreboding that Azar just couldn't identify, but she warned my mother Arella about it anyways. Arella told me to stay away from him, but refused to tell me why.

"Hardly a week after my mother told me this, Acheron attacked me. He cornered me in our library and put something up against the back of my head. I don't know what the object was, or even how it worked, but it was one of the most painful experiences I've ever gone through."

Raven paused for a moment, searching within herself for the strength to continue. The strength she needed came from an outside source however, in the form of Robin's hand around her own. She gently gave his hand a squeeze.

"I was too terrified to understand or follow everything that happened next, but almost immediately Azar began to comprehend what was happening—Acheron was a servant of Trigon. By spreading the message of his return, Acheron had converted a growing number of people to his cause and Azar was quick to expel them from the city when she discovered this. Azarath was a pacifist society, but there could be no forgiveness in this case and Acheron and all the others were forced to leave. They were banished to an uninhabited region in another dimension.

"Our healers were never able to figure out what Acheron did to me. And over the years I had suppressed this memory so completely that I had never thought to link my chaotic region to what he did."

Cyborg frowned for a moment, staring down at her. "What are you saying, Raven?" he asked. "That he actually created your chaotic region?"

Raven nodded very faintly. "I'm sure of it."

Cyborg began rubbing the side of his head. "But why would he create it?"

"I still have no clue," Raven replied. "But periodically during the few weeks leading up to Trigon's return, the very back of my skull would burn intensely. The more I think about it, the more I realize that it doesn't just have something to do with events I can't control—there's a link between it and Trigon."

"What does all this have to do with your current condition?" Starfire asked.

Raven took another deep breath, but before she could say anything, Robin spoke up. "Because Acheron's trying to take over her mind."

The others stared at Raven in stunned silence, waiting for her response, and she slowly nodded in agreement.

"He's tried already, hasn't he?" Robin asked her. "When you were unconscious before, you screamed for someone to get out of your head. That was Acheron, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"How's he even able to do this?" asked Cyborg. "He was banished to another dimension."

"Only through the slimmest of chances," she said, taking another long pause. "Before Trigon came to this dimension, he destroyed Azarath."

Robin's eyes widened in bewilderment. "Raven, I…" He swallowed deeply, unsure what words he should say. "Are you okay?"

"At first I was furious, devastated even. But then something changed in me, and I lost all hope. That's why I willingly gave myself over to Slade." She looked up at Robin and smiled. "But you gave me hope again. I've accepted that Azarath is gone. It won't change what happened, but it helps me. And actually it's only because of this that Trigon was destroyed."

Starfire furrowed her brow. "What is it that you mean? We saw you vanquish Trigon."

Shaking her head, Raven said, "Not entirely. Just as Trigon was about to kill me, I was encased with a shield of pure white energy that protected me and transformed me from a child back to myself. It was the life force of every Azarathian being channelled through me. And it's only because of that that I had the strength to destroy Trigon."

"Is that why you glowed white?" asked Beast Boy.

"Yeah. The glowing white represented all the souls together as one. Not even Trigon could withstand that. When the energy around me faded away, it was because the souls left my body. And without their help I don't think I would have had the strength alone to beat Trigon.

"I don't know what exactly happened during this, but somehow it had an affect on Acheron. All the souls moving between dimensions could have led to an instability, and this might have created some sort of rift that blurred the lines separating each world. There's a chance that this left a pathway for his soul to follow to our dimension."

"I think the big question right now is what's Acheron planning to do?" inquired Robin.

"I already know what he's hoping to accomplish. It's the only thing he could possibly be aiming for."

"And what's that?"

"Through me, he's going to try to resurrect Trigon."

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Ah, such suspense. Well, I absolutely love getting reviews. It makes me thrilled to find out people are enjoying my story, which consequently pumps me up and makes me write better. So if everyone leaves reviews for me, you will all get a better story. I think that's a fair trade.


	5. The Chilling Truth

I'll make this short and sweet. I normally respond to reviews by sending a reply to the reviewer, but I've received a few anonymous reviews. So I'd just like to thank both wanderingwarrior and DIW for taking the time to review my story. I always appreciate reviews and I wish I could send each of you a more formal reply, but this'll have to do for now.

And that's it. Hope everyone enjoys chapter 5!

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The tension level in the room was near indescribable, and for a long while no one said a word. The very hairs on the back of Robin's neck had fully risen and a cold shiver ran down his spine. Starfire found herself feeling strangely cold, and slowly rubbed her arms with her hands.

Carefully gathering himself, Robin asked, "Raven, would he be able to do that?"

Raven's chin trembled and for a moment her mouth opened but no sound escaped. Finally she said, "I don't know. But Acheron must think he'll be able to."

"And he needs you to do it?" Cyborg asked.

"I was the only one who could bring Trigon to Earth before. I'm probably the only one who might be capable of raising him."

"But he's not trying to get to you in the same way Slade was," Robin said. "We're dealing with a disembodied spirit."

"I know," Raven replied softly.

"So how do we stop the guy?" questioned Cyborg.

Staring down at the bed she was on, Raven merely shook her head.

"We've all got a long day in front of us," Robin said, standing up from the bed. "Raven, you need to eat. You'll have a better chance of fighting him off if we keep your strength up. Cyborg, I'm going to need a lot from you."

"What'd you have in mind?"

"I need you to do whatever you can to slow down the progression of Raven's chaotic region. Better yet, see if you can figure out some way of blocking an outside influence from getting to Raven's brain. You found a way to stop Phobia from projecting her powers outward, so see if there's any possibility of reversing that for Raven."

"I'll need to recharge a little before my mind's working at full again, but after that I'll do everything I can," he replied.

"What do you need us to do?" Starfire inquired.

"You and Beast Boy have to get rest. None of us have slept all night, so we're in no condition to respond to anything serious."

"I'd like to help with something if I can," Beast Boy quietly said.

"I know you would," replied Robin. "But right now the best way to help is for you and Star to rest. Cyborg's going to do all he can for Raven."

Beast Boy faintly nodded. "Alright."

Turning and looking up at Cyborg, Robin said, "Stay with Raven for a bit while I go make her some food."

"You got it."

Robin looked back over his shoulder at the other two. "Come on, let's go."

----------

The word 'silence' acted as the most adequate descriptor for the day's passing. No sounds came from the rooms of Starfire and Beast Boy, though it was not because they were sleeping deeply. Unbeknownst to the other, neither of them slept much through the day, instead tossing in their beds and achieving nothing more than entangling themselves within their sheets.

The morning sunrise was a brilliant display of red and orange, yet no Titan saw it. A pleasantly cool breeze drifted across the coast from the ocean, and a light sprinkle of rain fell from the clouds, yet no Titan felt either.

After several hours of recharging his batteries, Cyborg felt ready to tackle the monumental task Robin had assigned to him, which meant a self imposed confinement to his room for the day. Within twenty minutes of starting Cyborg had already scrapped the idea of preventing the chaotic region from extending itself any farther throughout Raven's mind. Over the course of three years Cyborg had sporadically spent time trying to understand this anomaly in her brain, and still he did not feel he had much of a grasp on its complexities and irregularities.

That seemed to only leave the possibility of finding a way to prevent Acheron from accessing Raven's mind. For Cyborg, science had proven to be the answer to so many questions and situations. After all, it was science and technology that had saved his life and given him a second chance. Now though, science presented no clear solution.

There was no stronger motivation than a friend's well being, and Cyborg would work until his fingers stopped functioning properly. Yet still Cyborg knew he would have to be nothing less than a miracle worker to find success.

The afternoon passed quietly.

----------

Silence was likewise the case in the medical bay. Raven had no appetite and took a long time to finish the sandwich brought by Robin, the sound of her soft chewing being the only noise to break the quiet in the room. By the early afternoon Robin began straightening up the room, removing shattered tables and chairs and collecting broken instruments and bits of concrete from the floor. At the very least it gave him something to do, slightly mitigating his feeling of helplessness.

The afternoon hours stretched by without either of them saying a word, merely sitting together. One of Robin's gloves sat atop a nearby table, and he held Raven's delicate hand within his own.

Toward early evening Starfire and Beast Boy separately came to see Raven, but no one spoke. For each of them it was reassuring to simply be in the room with her.

After his visit, Beast Boy left the Tower as a bald eagle and soared above the city, letting the cool wind calm his mind. Arching beyond the urban area, he landed at the summit of a hill that overlooked the skyscrapers and apartment complexes, shifting back to his human form once he had perched at the edge of the knoll. The sun was slowly dipping, bringing with it increasing darkness, and thousands of tiny lights sprung up before him.

While Beast Boy sat in solitude Starfire stood motionless in one of the Tower's washrooms, hunched over the sink and staring at herself in the tall mirror. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy from tears that had streamed down her cheeks after visiting Raven. Concern and fear were very nearly overtaking the highly emotional alien girl. Slowly she twisted the nozzles on the faucet, letting cool water pour out from the tap and spatter around in the sink. Gently she reached forward with her hands cupped, allowing the water to pool in her palms, and then splashed it against her face. Starfire felt a rush of cool over her skin, which washed away the tears that lingered under her eyes. Yet she knew the water acted only as momentary relief, for more tears were coming.

Evening gradually gave way to night, a passing that each Titan was barely conscious of. Still Robin sat with Raven, unaware of his growing hunger and fatigue. He was all too used to pushing his body to its very limits, and he was determined to remain at Raven's side until a breakthrough could be realized.

Raven shifted her head slightly, looking up at Robin with her wide, violet eyes. "I caused that gash on your forehead, didn't I? And all the small scrapes and cuts on your arms and face."

Robin slowly nodded.

"I'm sorry."

"Raven, don't apologize for that. It wasn't your fault at all."

"I'm not just apologizing for that. I'm sorry for everything that's happened because of me. I've already caused so much suffering."

"You're talking like this is your fault. Raven, there are some things none of us can control. But we'll fight it until the very end. We _will_ stop Acheron."

"I wish all of this would stop. I just want to be free to do anything, and to be with who I love. And I thought I had that."

Robin lightly kissed her cheek and reassuringly squeezed her hand tighter. "We'll fight this together. And we'll never give up on you. I promise."

Raven curled up against Robin and buried her head into his chest, letting tears fall from her eyes. Placing his arms around her, Robin pulled her even closer to himself.

"I'm so sorry for putting you through this again," Raven said. "I love you so much."

"I love you too. And there's nothing I wouldn't do for you."

"Robin, I'm scared," she said softly. "I'm scared about what might happen to me. I'm scared about what I might do to each of you. I accepted this before, and faced it willingly, but I just can't do it anymore. I was supposed to be free to live my life."

"You will be able to. No matter what happens nothing can change that. Acheron can't take your life away from you."

Raven pulled her head back from Robin so that she could look up at his face. "When I left Azarath, the last thing I ever expected to find was love." Despite the tears staining her face, she managed to smile. "But I'm glad I did."

----------

Beast Boy fiddled with the tiny oval pill he held between his thumb and forefinger, letting the light magnify its bright blue colour. "So this is a sleeping pill?"

Cyborg nodded after passing out identical pills to the others. "None of us are getting any sleep, and we're in desperate need of it. Another day or two of this and our bodies are just going to give up. So these are going to help us get some sleep."

Robin stared down at the cylindrical pill sitting in the middle of his palm. "And what if something happens over night? Are we going to be in too deep of a sleep to react?"

"Nothing like that," Cyborg replied. "All they're going to do is help reduce our anxiety level and make us a little dopey. We won't be sleeping more deeply than on any other night."

Robin turned his head toward Raven. "You okay with taking one of these?"

She gently nodded. "Meditating has been out of the question, so sleep is going to be the only way for me to stay focussed and to keep my strength up."

"Okay," Robin said. "We'll each take one tonight then."

Cyborg flicked his wrist, bringing up a blue display that showed the time. "It's nearly midnight. We'll talk about everything tomorrow morning, once we've all had some much needed rest."

"You three head to bed now. I'm just going to stay with Raven to make sure she falls asleep, but I'll be right behind you."

"Make sure you get some sleep, Robin," Cyborg said at the doorway. "You need it just as much as we do."

Robin nodded. "I know. And I'll be in my room just as soon as Raven's fine."

"G'night you two," Cyborg said on his way out.

As the door slid shut behind them Robin picked up the glass sitting next to Raven's bed, which still had a small amount of water in it, and handed it to her. "Drink up," he said with a smile.

She carefully placed the pill on her tongue and took a small slip from her glass. When the pill was down, she finished off the remainder of water. Robin took the glass from her and placed it back on the table, watching Raven pull the white sheets up over herself.

He bent down and gently kissed her forehead. "Goodnight Raven. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight Robin," she replied, smiling up at him. Raven pulled the covers above her shoulders and rolled onto her side, closing her eyes when her head touched the fluffy pillow. Though Cyborg's pill relaxed her system enough to help her fall asleep, knowing Robin was in the room watching her was the true reason she was able to rest peacefully.

----------

Robin had not so much as flinched in more than an hour, merely sitting in a chair with his chin cupped in the palm of his hand, breathing in and out through his nose, and staring across the dark room at the outline of Raven rising above the bed, the light too sparse to illuminate any details. He had long since disposed of the tiny pill given to him by Cyborg, electing to remain awake through the night in case the worst should happen to Raven.

The worst. It was all Robin could think about, regardless of how much he tried to the contrary. Every time he closed his eyes he could hear Raven's pitiful screams and see her tremendous suffering in his mind's eye. Robin could do nothing but watch as her lifeless body was cruelly cast aside upon Trigon's return, as if it meant nothing anymore. Death and destruction surrounded Robin and the entire world was alight with flames, but he did not care. His vision was fixed on the small body of the only girl he had ever loved.

Robin's eyes snapped open and he roughly rubbed his forehead. He had almost fallen asleep once again. This was his second straight night without even the scarcest amount of sleep, and it was being to take its toll. Robin had run on adrenaline during the first night, but his reserves were empty now. He felt depleted, utterly worn out, but still he pushed his body to its limits in order to remain awake with Raven.

To guarantee that he would continue to be alert, Robin acted in the same manner he always had. He closed his eyes and slowly counted to five, taking in and letting out one deep breath between each number and reminding himself of the reason why he was struggling onward. This simple tactic returned his focus during adverse times, never ceasing to grant him a slight burst of endurance. On this particular occasion, however, when he opened his eyes it was not only additional strength that he felt, but burning rage as well.

He gripped the arm of the chair he was in with a ferocious intensity, letting anger course through his body and consume him. Robin was furious that Raven's body was to be used to resurrect Trigon, then discarded as if it were worthless; furious that she was unable to escape any of this torment, unable to rid herself of her demonic parentage; furious that he might lose her forever; but above all Robin was furious of the possibility that there was not a damned thing he could do about any of this.

Slowly he stood up from his chair and walked over to Raven's side, being careful not to make a sound, and stared down at her as she slept. She lay on her side with her knees pulled up tightly to her chest, steadily breathing deeply through her nose. There was something so beautiful about the way Raven slept, and though it did not calm Robin completely, it helped slightly.

For now though, it was all he could do to keep the horrifying images from finding their way into his head.

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Rays from the sun had long since found their way into the medical bay via the large window before Robin was actually aware of the light. Once again in the chair, he briefly shifted his position to glance out at the sun. While the thick glass was utterly obliterated by Raven earlier, Cyborg had fitted a new pane not long afterward. The medical bay was one of the rooms above all others that required protection from the elements. Looking at it now Robin could see tiny pinpricks of water hitting against the glass from a light morning shower, a frequent occurrence in Jump City.

Such tremendous contrast, thought Robin. The beauty of a Pacific morning—clear, peaceful, quiet—was deeply opposed to the maelstrom still happening within the Tower.

Robin turned away from the window, looking across to the far side of the room at the clock, one of the only functioning pieces of equipment left in the room. It displayed 10:17 in bright teal numbers. On any other morning Robin would have at the very least completed a thorough workout and eaten breakfast by this time.

This was unlike any other morning, however. All the tasks and chores that would normally be foremost on his mind had dissipated, leaving Robin with but one: protect the woman lying in front of him from any harm.

"Yo, Robin!"

Barely reacting, Robin turned in the chair, looking over his shoulder at the door to the medical bay. Cyborg was standing several feet into the room, his head slightly cocked to the side in a quizzical manner.

"So you are awake," Cyborg said. "I thought you might be sleeping after the first couple times I said your name."

"Yeah, I'm awake," Robin replied somewhat groggily.

Cyborg squinted his eye, studying Robin briefly. "You've been up all night, haven't you?"

Robin slowly nodded while he rubbed the side of his face.

Sighing, Cyborg said, "You're doing irreparable damage to yourself by not sleeping."

"I had to make sure Raven was okay."

"I understand that completely. I would've stayed to watch over her too, but we all needed sleep."

"I'm fine," he said brusquely.

"Robin, I can see how fatigued you are. You look drained and most of the colour has disappeared from your face. I didn't want to say anything last night, but for the last day your movements have been somewhat slower, almost clumsy."

"I told you, I'm fine."

"Only because you keep telling yourself that. You're not realizing how exhausted your body actually is."

"You just worry about figuring out how to stop Acheron from entering Raven's mind."

Cyborg did not press the issue further, knowing full well Robin could be the most stubborn Titan, especially when someone he cared for deeply was at risk. "If you won't sleep, at least come to the kitchen and get something to eat. You'll need to keep your strength up any way you can."

Several long moments passed without a reply, during which Cyborg began to wonder if Robin had even heard him—or if his body had decided to shut itself down.

"I'm staying here," he said finally, speaking in a tone of voice to signal the conversation was at an end and that there would be no more debating. Cyborg was very familiar with the use of that tone by Robin.

Backing out without saying another word, Cyborg left the medical area and walked down the corridors leading to the main room, emerging through the double sliding doors to find Beast Boy and Starfire leaning against the kitchen counters opposite one another.

"Has Robin awakened yet?" Starfire inquired.

"He never went to sleep," Cyborg answered. "He's been with Raven all night."

"That dude seriously needs to sleep," Beast Boy said.

"And eat," replied Cyborg. "But I don't think he'll do either."

"When was it that he last ate?"

"He made Raven a sandwich yesterday afternoon, but I don't remember seeing him eat anything."

Cyborg shook his head. "I don't think he did, which means he probably hasn't eaten since before our tussle with Cinderblock. None of us have had much ourselves, but at least we've had rest. Robin won't be able to go on much longer without either. I can make him a sandwich, but I should really get back to work on protecting Raven's mind as soon as I can."

"I wouldn't mind being with Raven for the next little while anyways, so I'll take it to Robin and make sure he eats it," Beast Boy announced.

Looking over at Starfire, Cyborg could clearly read her facial expressions and body language. She no longer seemed overly tired, but she looked defeated, demoralized. She cared for Raven just as much as anyone else, yet had not really been assigned a constructive task, especially now that Robin seemed to have taken it upon himself to watch Raven continuously. He could easily tell she wanted to help in some way. Anything was better than sitting around waiting. "Hey Star, you want to gimme a hand figuring a way to keep Acheron away from Raven?"

At that she perked up considerably. "Yes. I would love to help."

"Great. Let me just whip up a sandwich for our boy and we can get to work."

----------

Standing at the window Robin could see small waves lapping against the rocky island far below him. The strong rays emitted by the sun warmed his entire body, helping energize him slightly, but he knew full well it was no replacement for sleep. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, the kind in which Robin loved to be up on the roof enjoying. Two small birds whipped past the window, chirping happily in the late morning's warmth.

Robin heard a soft noise from behind, and turned around to see Raven standing upright several feet in front of the bed. She stood motionless, staring at him intently.

"Raven, are you ok?" Robin asked, beginning to step forward.

"Raven?"

He froze. Sheer horror fell upon Robin and a slight quiver ran down his right arm. His brain was unable to process a thought, and Robin was unsure if he was even still breathing.

Pulsating black energy surged forward and Robin's eyes widened in terror, barely comprehending the moment. It was the manifestation of his most frightening nightmare. He felt a tremendous weight on his chest for an instant—like being crushed underneath hundreds of pounds—before the pain struck. When it did, the pain was unlike anything Robin had ever felt in his life, slowly creeping outward from the very centre of his chest and overtaking his shoulders and stomach. Contact with the ground ended suddenly and Robin realized he was being driven backward through the air with tremendous force. He struck the far wall at a furious intensity as black continued to flow forth from Raven's outstretched hands, crushing him against it. The energy burned through his clothing, eating his skin, and Robin screamed out hoarsely.

Finally she relented and Robin collapsed to the floor, thin wisps of smoke rising upward from his charred body. His vision was heavily blurred from tears and he was painfully groggy, but he could still make out Raven's silhouette. It was stepping toward him.

Then he lost consciousness.

----------

Beast Boy paused for a moment outside the medical bay, listening curiously. He could have sworn that he heard a soft scream, but there were no other sounds now. Shrugging, he walked forward holding the forest green tray atop which was Robin's sandwich and a tall glass of orange juice, and entered through the first sliding door, which brought him into the examining room. The second sliding door whooshed open in front of him, closing behind only a moment later. Beast Boy's eyes widened in excitement when he saw Raven standing off to his right.

"Raven! You're awake!" he shouted joyously, taking several quick steps forward. "How are you feeling? Do you need me to get you any—"

He abruptly stopped. Beast Boy could now see Robin's crumpled body, lying still at the base of the wall. The room smelt of bacon, and Beast Boy realized with utter horror that the smell came from Robin's mangled flesh. His entire torso looked like it had been shredded, hardly more than a pulpy mess of bright red.

Beast Boy was unable to remove his eyes from Robin, and his mouth opened in shock, but the attack came before he could get out a single word. Swirls of black danced outward from Raven's right hand, pounding into Beast Boy with violent savagery. The tray was instantly obliterated and he was propelled through the door behind him, dislodging it from its thick hinges and sending the contorted metal crashing into the examining room with a horrendous grinding noise that overpowered the ringing in his ears.

He must have blacked out momentarily, because when Beast Boy opened his eyes he was already flopped on the floor leaning against the wall farthest from the medical bay itself. Looking down he could see several small pools of blood on the floor near him and when a whimpered cough escaped his lips thick red splattered on his chest. The door lay in two large pieces on either side of him, bent in such a way that they were almost unrecognizable. One of the rippled sections was lying on his left hand and part of his forearm, but he had lost all sensation and feeling below his shoulder, leaving Beast Boy to vaguely speculate whether or not his hand was even still attached. Warm liquid trickled out from both his ears.

Lying three feet to the right was his yellow communicator, which somehow remained undamaged despite everything. Beast Boy gingerly reached for it, biting his bottom lip to quell the sharp pain shooting up his arm and into his chest. His head throbbed and felt as though pins were being inserted into the back of his eyes, but he continued to reach, barely grazing it with the tips of his fingers. A wave of pain from his left arm jolted Beast Boy, leaving no doubt everything was still connected, but the weight of the steel door prevented him from leaning any farther to the right. Stretching to his limits he finally touched enough of the communicator to slide it closer, scooping it up a moment later.

So focussed on the small device was Beast Boy that he failed to notice Raven's appearance from the medical bay. Just as he pressed down on the small red emergency button a black aura encapsulated the communicator, ripping it from his weak grip. The dark oval floated into Raven's waiting hand, whereupon she glanced at it for a moment. The device cracked apart with a crunching sound amidst pressure from thin black lines of energy bursting from Raven's fingers.

Beast Boy sat still, breathing in deep breaths and staring up at Raven through half closed eyes. She took two more steps toward him, paused briefly, and whipped her hand forward. The resulting dark energy snapped Beast Boy's head backward, slamming it into the wall with enough strength that darkness overtook him.

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Cyborg's heart sank into the very pit of his stomach when the emergency light flashed. The signal could only have come from Robin or Beast Boy, both of whom were currently with Raven.

Clawing his way up from his desk and out the door, Cyborg once again tore down the hallway toward the medical bay, with Starfire streaking through the air slightly above his shoulder to the right.

Starfire's keen intuition picked up on something dark the farther she travelled, leaving her with a deep feeling of dread. She gasped when the door to the examining room opened and was unable to bring air into her lungs for several seconds. The fear of what she might see in no way prepared her for what actually lay spread out before her.

Shards and fragments of metal were strewn about and red splotches littered the room. Beast Boy was sprawled to one side, part of his small frame obstructed by a maimed section of what was once a door, and large areas of his clothing had turned red.

Her first instinct was that he was dead.

When she and Cyborg rushed to his side, however, Starfire could see that Beast Boy was breathing very faintly. Cyborg gently lifted him upright, letting him lean against the wall. The blood that stained his body was fresh, its wetness reflecting sparse amounts of the electrical lighting above them. He moaned softly and Cyborg quickly stuck his finger against the side of Beast Boy's neck just below his jawbone, feeling for the strength of his pulse. Starfire tightly gripped the large sheet of metal lying on his arm, lifting it off him with ease and setting it down several feet away.

Beast Boy's eyes slowly blinked several times and he weakly groaned.

"Come on, BB," Cyborg said aloud.

He coughed lightly, following that with a deep heave that shook his entire body. His eyelids gradually opened until Beast Boy was staring up at Cyborg.

"What happened here?" asked Cyborg.

Beast Boy swallowed and managed to raise his right hand, pointing into the medical bay. "Robin," he said. "Help him."

Cyborg whipped his head around to look into the medical bay, but Starfire was already off her feet, practically leaping through the shattered doorway. She frantically looked to the left and then spun to the right, stopping with abject terror at what she saw.

"My God," Cyborg croaked out.

The following minute was a blur to Cyborg, who acted before his mind had processed a thought. When he finally found his senses once more he had already lifted Robin up from the ground and transported him over to the clean bed Raven was on only a short time before.

Cyborg scrambled over to a desk against the wall, where he had temporarily moved all equipment still in one piece, and clamped his right hand on its edge, pulling it up against the bed. "Go get Beast Boy, Star," he said as he picked up a pair of scissors. "I'll need him in the other bed."

"I'm okay," Beast Boy responded weakly, standing on his feet and using his right arm to brace himself against what was left of the door frame. "Don't…don't worry about me."

Cyborg worked quickly and unflinchingly, cutting away the shards of clothing that dangled on Robin's torso and prevented him from attending to the severe injuries. He let the bits of blood stained cloth fall to the floor and then unhooked his utility belt, tossing it on top of the fabric. Cyborg felt at Robin's pulse and then bent down over his chest, listening to his heart.

"Starfire, in the second drawer of this desk are several syringes. There's one that's labelled _Cardiac Augmentation Stimulation Unit_. I need you to get me that one."

She thrust the drawer open and pushed aside several syringes, scanning the names on each, and then spied the one that was needed underneath the others. As Starfire picked it up and handed it to Cyborg she asked, "What is it?"

"Synthetic adrenaline," he replied, taking it from her quivering hands. "His body has suffered severe trauma and isn't responding well enough." Cyborg ripped the plastic off the syringe and held the needle upward, flicking it with his middle finger. He inserted the tip into the torn flesh over Robin's heart and pressed down on the syringe, releasing the clear liquid into his system.

"Beast Boy," Cyborg half shouted, ensuring he could hear his voice. "I need you to tell me what happened in here."

"It was Raven," he replied, taking a deep breath. "Robin was like this when I…when I came in."

"Did she say anything to you?" Cyborg asked while he continued to work on Robin.

"No. She…she just attacked."

"Acheron," remarked Cyborg. "He managed to take control of her." He filled his hands with large amounts of white gauze and stuffed it into Robin's sheared skin.

Silently, and with wide eyes, Starfire walked up to the bed, staring blankly at Robin. Cyborg noticed how pale her skin was, and how even her bright green eyes seemed duller. He could not work on Robin while she stood there frightened.

"Starfire."

She did not respond.

"Starfire!"

Her eyes snapped to life again and she looked up from Robin at Cyborg.

"I need you to search the Tower and see if Raven is still here. Can you do that?"

Starfire slowly nodded. She was close to being in shock.

"Good. Check each level. There might be something here that Acheron needs."

Cyborg picked up a reasonably large pair of tweezers as Starfire floated out of the medical bay. He bent forward over Robin and carefully closed the tweezers over a small piece of fabric that had fused with his skin from the intense heat, gently pulling it off. Bits of clothing were scattered everywhere on Robin's torso. And Cyborg would have to remove each one if Robin was to make it through this.

Robin's breathing had grown slightly stronger since Cyborg had injected the adrenaline. Without the benefit of working equipment though, he would be unable to sufficiently monitor Robin. Cyborg had no alternative but to perform guess work.

Deep down, he knew Robin stood little chance of surviving.

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From here on the story will become far more intense, as the end of this chapter showed. The last two chapters were all about the characters understanding what was happening and trying to figure out solutions. Now, it is only a matter of survival and stopping Acheron.


	6. Little Miracle

First off, let me just apologize profusely for how long I've taken to get this chapter up. Not only has it been hard finding the time to write recently, but this chapter required a frustratingly large amount of research. This is because it's chalk full of medical science stuff, which I've really never written before now. On top of that I've been trying to upload it for days without success. But I finally got it up! Ha ha!

On another note, I wanted to try to explain why Raven and Arella had such a cold and distant relationship later in Raven's life and why her mother had fallen to despair and given up hope. This can be seen very clearly in the episode "The Prophecy," so I felt a need to create a situation showing how and why that change occurred.

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Incandescent orange light flickered out from around the corner, creeping along the marble floor and causing shadows to fervently dance on the surrounding walls.

Carefully holding the thin metal handrail in her tiny hands, Raven slowly climbed down the winding stairs, drawn by the sound of barely audible voices. She stepped off the final stair and pressed her back up against the smooth wall, sliding along it to the edge of the room from which the light and voices came.

The small girl quietly stuck her head around the corner, peeking into the room. Raven's mother stood off to one side, her white cloak pulled up over her head, while Azar remained nearer to the centre. The latter's ornate veil hung loosely from her shoulders and her long robe flowed over her body, leaving her face and hands as the only visible flesh. In the very middle of the room sat one large intricately decorated red table, atop which were three bright candles arranged in a triangle.

Arella rested her forehead in one of her slender hands, staring down at the floor. "I fled Earth seeking refuge. I brought my unborn daughter to Azarath hoping she would be safe."

Azar remained impassive. "Trigon's minions exist in all places. There is nowhere she can truly escape his grasp."

"Then perhaps I should just return to Earth." Arella lifted her head, looking across the room at Azar.

"That is the worst thing you could do," Azar replied firmly. "Under no circumstances should Raven ever enter the dimension of Earth."

Pulling back from around the corner, Raven furrowed her tiny brow. Earth? Never before had she heard of Earth prior to this week. Yet here was Azar and her mother discussing this place, mere days after Acheron had mentioned it himself…right before he attacked her. But why was everyone suddenly so concerned with Earth?

Standing in the hallway outside Raven could hear Azar continue. "Going there would be all Trigon required to return. There are dark and ancient places in that dimension—places that would call to Raven, drawing her ever closer to the end."

"Then what options are available to us?"

"Few I am afraid. Until we can assess what he did to her, I can do nothing but teach her to suppress her emotions. Trigon feeds on anger, hatred and fear and therefore young Raven cannot give him those opportunities. She must forever be impassive."

Arella closed her eyes for a moment and breathed in deeply. "She is just a child."

"That child, unless we are ever vigilant, will bring about the destruction of Azarath. You know this, Arella."

"I only want to keep her away from what you call her destiny."

"That may not be possible. And I am afraid to tell you the lengths we must go in order to guarantee her impassivity."

"Lady Azar, what do you mean?"

"All emotions must be withheld from her. Even your love."

Arella held her hand to her mouth. Knots fiercely twisted in her stomach and she struggled for breath, feeling a painful constriction on her chest. "Raven is all that I have."

"I am sorry. But for the safety of Azarath and all worlds, Raven must be kept from you."

"_Mommy!"_

Azar sharply turned to see Raven dart out from around the corner wearing her sleeping garments. She rushed to Arella's side and thrust her arms around her waist, burying her tear stained face into her mother's robes.

"Raven, return to your room at once," Azar commanded.

"I won't let you go!" Raven whimpered. "Don't make me go!"

Arella placed one hand on Raven's back, while she ran the other through her hair softly, trying to comfort her.

"Release your daughter. It is precisely these emotions that leave Raven vulnerable to Trigon."

Arella knelt before Raven, bringing their eyes to the same level. She softly placed one hand on her daughter's cheek, wiping away a tear with her thumb. Raven tightly gripped Arella's shoulders with her small hands.

Azar remained steadfast. "Arella," she said, "there is no alternative."

Arella looked up at the High Priestess and fought back her own tears before looking into her daughter's beautiful violet eyes. "I need you to be strong for me, Raven. Can you do that?"

"Mommy, what's happening? I don't understand."

"Something has to happen that neither of us want. But it's for the best. It's to keep you safe." In the sparse light Arella could see Raven's face was flushed a bright red and that her eyes were quivering.

"For seven years you have been all that I've cared about. You've been my life, Raven. The only decisions I have made in that time were done for your benefit. And now I am forced into making the most difficult decision I have ever faced."

The little girl fiercely wrapped her arms around Arella's shoulder and neck, squeezing hard. Arella returned Raven's embrace, holding her daughter close to her. She closed her eyes, letting one tear fall down her cheek, and for more than a minute they remained in silence.

Finally Arella said, "You know I love you so much."

"I love you too, mommy."

Azar, now at Raven's side, placed one hand on her shoulder. "Come, my child," she said, separating her from her mother. "It is time to find you a new home."

Painful and devastating as it was, for the sake of Raven Arella kept a smile on her face. "Everything will be okay, Raven. Just be brave."

Raven marched out of the room with one hand held by Azar, looking back over her shoulder as the only world she ever knew changed forever.

Arella's knees trembled once she was alone, soon leaving her unable to remain upright. She collapsed backward onto one of the low chairs in the room and buried her face in her hands.

It would be a long while before she was ready to stand again.

----------

Cyborg snatched a white cloth from the top of the desk to his left and quickly rubbed it over his hands in an attempt to remove some of the blood coating them before he continued.

Perhaps the only piece of large medical equipment that had survived was one of the lab's sphygmometers, which measured the strength of a patient's pulse. Cyborg took a moment to turn the machine on and unhooked a small device that was attached to a long stretch cord. He slipped the device onto Robin's middle finger; after several seconds the wall hung machine beeped once and a reading of 142 flashed on the screen. Cyborg gritted his teeth—a pulse reading of between sixty and one hundred beats per minute represented normal for a person who was resting. Robin's body was currently in shock, and the pulse had naturally increased, though at the moment his rate was approaching a dangerous rate. While Cyborg wished for more functional equipment, the sphygmometer would be able to at least provide some measure of warning should his condition worsen.

The gauze covering Robin's torso was now stained a deep red, and Cyborg carefully removed the material from his skin, dumping all of it into a steel receptacle near his feet. He had managed to control the bleeding, but there were still serious obstacles to overcome. To curtail the risk of infection the skin could not be left exposed, so Cyborg filled his hands with fresh gauze and tightly covered Robin's torso, securing it in place with medical bandages.

Cyborg inserted a thin instrument into Robin's ear and immediately a double zero appeared on the small display screen. The numbers increased rapidly until, to Cyborg's discomfort, a third number was needed. Finally the count came to a stop at just under 107.

"BB, I'm going to need your help," Cyborg said. "Robin's temperature is dangerously high, and we need to lower it."

"What…do you need?" Beast Boy asked weakly.

"In the container on the far left wall outside in the examining room are several ice packs, cloths, ointments and all sorts of other things. I need you to bring me everything."

Beast Boy turned and shambled off, keeping his hand along the wall to maintain his balance. The wall container was partially open as a result of Raven's attack, and much of its contents had spilled out onto the ground. Carefully bending over he scooped up all that he could carry and with a great deal of effort managed to return to Cyborg, unloading the supplies into one pile atop the desk.

Cyborg frantically picked up the ice packs and pressed down firmly on each of them until he heard a loud pop, signalling that the small bubble of liquid inside had burst. This chemical instantly combined with the grainy powder also in the packet, the result of which produced near freezing temperatures. He placed an ice pack on Robin's groin, neck and in each of his armpits, where large blood vessels lying close to the surface allowed for the quickest and most effective cooling.

He rummaged through the top drawer of the desk and pulled out a single, empty syringe and one small vial of yellow liquid that was simply labelled _General Anti-Infectant_. Taking the syringe out of its plastic casing, Cyborg punctured the lid of the anti-infectant with its tip, withdrawing three dozen millilitres. He held the needle upward and squirted out the tiniest bit to ensure there were no air bubbles and then inserted it into Robin's arm just below the shoulder.

Beast Boy returned with another armload of medical supplies, gently letting it all fall from his arms. As he stepped away from the desk he was washed with a wave of nausea and dizziness and he stumbled, barely staying on his feet, and his vision blurred, quickly covering Cyborg and the room in a haze.

He heard low vibrations, needing a few seconds to realize it was Cyborg's voice. The sound was dull, barely recognizable, and Beast Boy's ears were unable to pick out anything the slightest bit discernible. He wavered where he stood, slowly swaying back and forth while his vision completely left him, and then toppled backward, already unconscious before hitting the floor.

Cyborg whipped his head around and cursed when he saw Beast Boy lying awkwardly on his back. He dropped his implements on top of the desk amidst all the clutter and hoisted the small frame of his friend up into his arms, dashing around Robin's bed and placing him on a small cot, which had been wheeled in the day before as a replacement for the large bed Raven sliced in half.

Praying that Beast Boy's injuries were not life threatening, Cyborg turned away from him to focus once more on Robin. Even without the benefit of most of his equipment, it was clear the severity of Robin's burns resulted in a loss of bodily fluids in his skin tissue, which needed to be replenished immediately. Cyborg scanned the top of the desk for the supplies necessary to perform intravenous therapy, and quickly found most of the equipment, but he could not locate the actual solution itself. Supplies slid off all sides of the desk as Cyborg tossed everything around, and they bounced and clanked against the floor.

When it was clear Beast Boy had not managed to bring the fluids from the examining room, Cyborg raced out and dropped to his knees to sort through the mess of material on the ground. He came across several plastic bags that had burst open, leaking solution across much of the surrounding floor, and thankfully none of them were what he currently needed. Finally he retrieved an intact plastic bag that read _Electrolytes Isotonic_, the fluid used for trauma cases such as burns, and ran back to Robin's side.

Cyborg tilted the plastic bag upside down, holding it between his thumb and forefinger, and removed the cover from the solution valve. Flicking the cover off the piercing device, he carefully inserted it into the valve, but stopped cold once it was ready. To function properly, the IV needed to hang from something, and there was nothing in the immediate vicinity to allow for that. Cyborg studied the medical room for anything that might help, and was stunned when he saw a coat rack of all things lying in the far corner. He carefully placed the IV down by Robin and grabbed the coat rack, standing it up beside the bed. Next he hung the solution bag from one of the racks and removed the airway valve from the top of the drip chamber. Squeezing and releasing the drip chamber several times pumped the solution through, and Cyborg whipped off the needle cover while the drip chamber was filled. He twisted the roller clamp underneath the chamber, allowing the fluid to flow through.

Glancing into the open drawer on the desk, Cyborg pulled out a rubber band, a cotton swab and a small vial of rubbing alcohol. He placed the band on Robin's upper arm, restricting blood flow to the veins in his forearm, and then dripped alcohol onto the cotton swab, which he used to cleanse the insertion point for the needle. Cyborg placed the thumb of his free hand on Robin's forearm and used it to pull back on his skin just as he punctured through to the vein with the needle tip. A small piece of adhesive tape secured the needle firmly in place. Finally he adjusted the roller clamp to allow for fifty drops per minute.

Once more Cyborg placed the thin thermometer in Robin's ear, nervously watching the digits climb. This time the reading produced a figure of 104 degrees. Robin's temperature was indeed cooling, but it still had to be lowered further. Cyborg tossed the four ice packs that were currently on Robin into the receptacle along with the bloodied gauze, quickly replacing them with four fresh ones.

He breathed a sigh of relief and stood back. The most critical moments in Robin's recovery were over, and for at least a few minutes Cyborg could examine Beast Boy. There were several large tears in his clothing that revealed bruised and bloody flesh. Cyborg grabbed the edges of the largest hole and ripped open the fabric. Other than numerous superficial lacerations, there appeared to be no major external injuries. Beast Boy had undergone blunt force trauma however, leaving no doubt in Cyborg's mind that internal damage existed somewhere. Finding that damage without the benefit of medical equipment was going to be a difficult task.

Cyborg placed his pointer and middle fingers on Beast Boy's flesh and firmly pressed down, methodically feeling every inch of his torso for internal injury. When that portion of his examination produced nothing, Cyborg steadily moved up his neck. It was only then that he noticed blood had leaked from Beast Boy's ears. Quickly Cyborg felt his temples and behind his ears, fearing that his first prognosis was correct. Before he could be sure Cyborg checked Beast Boy's pulse—it was far too slow—and lifted his eyelids to get a view of his pupils, which were considerably dilated. Cyborg cursed at the discovery and flicked his arm communicator.

"Star, have you found anything yet?"

A moment later her face materialized. "Nothing. Is every—"

"I need you to go to my room and get my cordless drill, along with every bit. All of it should be on one of the tables next to my bed. Then grab Robin's electric razor."

"Why do you need these things?" she asked.

"Just bring them to the lab fast." With that he clicked his communicator off.

Cyborg had never before attempted what he was now forced to do. A critical situation existed and it required immediate attention, regardless of the dangers it presented. Left alone Beast Boy would surely die, but the treatment, especially with the only tools currently available to him, posed serious risks. Cyborg had read about the procedure in academic journals, but was he actually about to attempt it himself?

Unfortunately he had no choice whatsoever. It was Beast Boy's only hope of survival, and there was no risk too great that Cyborg would not willingly assume to save his friend. But—dear God—burr holes?

Cyborg closed his eyes, took several deep breaths, and rubbed his forehead for a brief moment before returning to the desk of scanty medical supplies. Quickly flipping through everything he found several small packets of all purpose antiseptic cleaners, which he promptly snatched up.

Another painfully long minute ticked by before Starfire rushed in holding a small electric razor and Cyborg's large blue and grey power drill. She immediately gasped when she saw Beast Boy lying motionless on the other bed.

"Quick, Star, I need your help with this."

"Is he okay?" she barely managed to choke out.

"BB has an acute subdural haematoma—it's a very serious head injury," Cyborg replied, taking the drill and case of bits from Starfire. "Blood is accumulating in his head just above his left temple, which is drowning his cells. And the pressure is rapidly growing." He ripped open one of packets of antiseptic and pulled out the second smallest drill bit. "Take the electric razor and shave the left side of his head, Star."

"Shave his head?" she asked, nervously shaking ever so slightly. "Why?"

"Just do it quickly. No time for a neat job—just get his hair off."

Still with her eyes wide from fright, Starfire clicked the electric razor on and ran it over Beast Boy's head, beginning around his left ear. Clumps of green hair fell onto the pillow and sheets.

"If we don't relieve the pressure in his head and drain the haematoma," Cyborg continued, "BB will die. With the severity of his head trauma and our limited supplies, the only way to do that is to drill into his skull."

A look of horror passed over Starfire's face and both of her hands trembled. For a moment her chest and throat were so constricted she could not breathe, and dizziness passed over her entire body. Though she finally managed to pull air down into her lungs, each breath burned with an intensity she had never experienced. With all her willpower and strength she continued moving the razor along Beast Boy's head until the entire left side was devoid of thick hair.

Cyborg tossed the antiseptic cloth down after sterilizing the bit, which he inserted into the power drill. He handed the drill to Starfire and retrieved a small scalpel, a clamp and another antiseptic from the desk. Cyborg opened the packet, took out the cloth and thoroughly rubbed it over the shaved portion of Beast Boy's head. Once done he picked up the scalpel and firmly gripped it like a pencil. "Before I begin drilling, I have to make a small incision into his scalp."

Starfire tightly grasped the drill and gritted her teeth in discomfort while watching Cyborg insert the scalpel into Beast Boy's temple. The green flesh separated easily under the knife blade, which Cyborg used to make a nearly inch long slice. A small amount of blood trickled out from beneath the skin and Cyborg quickly dabbed at it with a cloth. He placed the red stained scalpel down and pressed against the flesh with the clamp, stretching the tissue open and holding it in place.

Cyborg held out his hand toward Starfire. "Hand me the drill."

While shaking Starfire gently placed the power drill into the palm of his hand and took a step back. Cyborg gripped the handle of the large tool, staring down at the exposed tissue of Beast Boy's skull.

At that moment the sphygmometer screamed its head off, filling the small room with ear piercingly loud beeps that rang out again and again. The drill fell from Cyborg's hand, clanking loudly on impact and sending the bit skittering across the floor. He was at Robin's side in a heartbeat, staring at the sphygmometer's readings with his breath held.

"It's Robin pulse—it's speeding up at a dangerous rate. Something's seriously wrong with him."

Cyborg ripped off the bandages covering Robin's torso, flinging bits of gauze over the sides of the bed and revealing a dark purplish-black spot near the edge of his ribcage on the lower right side of his stomach.

"Oh God, oh God," Cyborg whispered. Taking a breath he looked back over his shoulder, staring directly into Starfire's eyes. "Star, you're going to have to be the one who performs the procedure on Beast Boy."

Starfire's breathing rapidly increased and she looked back at Cyborg terror stricken, shivering so feverously her teeth rattled against each other. "I…I cannot do that."

"You have to."

"No…no, I cannot." She was in a state of panic and shook her head repeatedly.

"I need you to do this," Cyborg said, hoping his voice remained calm.

Starfire buried her face into the palms of her hands. "I cannot do it."

Grasping her shoulders firmly, and being careful not to be rough, Cyborg said, "Star, look at me."

Slowly she lowered her hands and stared up at him with wide eyes.

"I think one of Robin's organs has ruptured, which means he needs medical attention _right now_. But Beast Boy's condition is just as critical. Both of them will die without treatment. I can talk you through the procedure to save Beast Boy, but you need to calm down. Can you do that?"

Starfire barely nodded her head, never taking her eyes off Cyborg.

"Good. Now we've got to get to work." Cyborg released Starfire and turned away, snatching up a clean scalpel and running his fingertips over the dark area on Robin's stomach. "Okay Star, pick up the drill."

Using the bed she lowered herself to the ground and grabbed the drill, looking around for the tiny steel bit that had become dislodged. Seeing it only a few feet away Starfire closed her fingers around the bit and while on her knees fumbled trying to insert it properly. Her hands were still shaking, making the task extremely difficult to accomplish. With great effort the bit finally clicked into the drill and Starfire awkwardly climbed back to her feet, clinging onto the top of the bed to steady herself.

"Okay," she softly said.

Thick black and red oozed out from Robin's stomach as Cyborg split open his flesh, greatly obscuring the line along which he was making his incision. "Now take the first and second fingers of your left hand and very carefully place them on the exposed skull. You should feel a spot with a slight bulge."

Starfire was shaking her head. "I cannot find anything."

"It's there," Cyborg replied hastily. "But it'll barely be distinguishable from the rest of the skull. Just keep feeling for it." He glanced up at the sphygmometer nervously, but it had not sped up any further. Cyborg shoved gauze against the edges of Robin's large incision, trying feverously to control the bleeding—almost immediately the white vanished against an onslaught of thick crimson liquid. He shoved his left hand through the split flesh into Robin's open stomach and felt his organs, but he could not yet find the source.

Her hands still trembling, Starfire continued running the tips of her fingers over her friend's exposed skull. Finally she felt a tiny bump. "I think I have found it."

Cyborg whipped the bloodied gauze out of Robin and threw it all to the ground in one large handful. It splattered with a wet smack and blood burst outward on impact, leaving the floor and Cyborg's right leg below the knee coated in red. "Okay, now place your left pointer finger exactly two centimetres above the edge of the bulge." Stretching the skin open further with his left hand, Cyborg stuffed more gauze into Robin to absorb the still flowing blood, soaking up as much of it as he could before tossing another handful down beside him.

"Okay," she replied, fear still clearly present in her voice.

"That exact point is where you're going to drill through."

Starfire whimpered and sniffed loudly. Cyborg knew she had begun to softly cry.

"You can do this, Star," he said. "You're going to save Beast Boy's life." Too much blood and guck still remained inside Robin's stomach. Cyborg glanced up at the sphygmometer once more for a moment and then cupped his right hand and slid it into Robin's stomach, using it to scoop out as much as he could. The blood flowed over Robin, leaving a deep red stain on his skin, and pooled on the bed against his leg. "Star, I need you to be ready to do this," Cyborg said.

Starfire clenched her jaw and blinked away the tears, finding a firm determination within herself. "I am ready."

"Then place the drill against Beast Boy's skull where your pointer finger is and very delicately pierce through. It is imperative that you use very little pressure doing this or you'll plunge straight into his brain." A small compartment on Cyborg's shoulder popped upward with a click, exposing a bright blue light that he shone on Robin, gaining a far better view of the damage inside his stomach.

"Okay," she replied. "I am starting." The drill buzzed to life in her hands and the menacingly sharp bit at its end spun at a frightening pace. For several long seconds she could not bring herself to touch the device to Beast Boy's skull, merely watching the drill bit spin and wondering how everything had led her to this moment. Only a few days before there was such a pleasant and elated atmosphere in the Tower, and Starfire was genuinely happy for Raven, who had seemed to be more at peace than she had ever been. Yet now Starfire stood poised over an unconscious Beast Boy, holding his life in her hands. His survival depended on her ability to perform a life saving operation with a power drill.

Squeezing the handle with slightly more strength, Starfire lowered the drill toward Beast Boy, all the while feeling sweat running over her forehead and down the rest of her face. The tip of the drill came in contact with the skull and before Starfire could even react there was a sickening crunch and the bone seemed to cave inward as the drill bit rushed straight downward.

Starfire yanked the drill back out and stepped back in shock. She stared at the small hole in Beast Boy's skull, waiting for something to happen—but there was nothing.

"What happened?" Cyborg asked in alarm, staring up at Starfire.

"I am not sure," she replied, breathing heavily. "I began drilling and it went right through his skull. Did I…?" She trailed off, too afraid to say the words.

"Did anything come out?"

She shook her head quickly, but did not say a word.

"Look at the drill bit," Cyborg said. "Is there anything on it?"

When Starfire raised the drill to her face she could see that the bit remained perfectly clean. "No."

"Then you just penetrated the skull. Don't worry, Beast Boy is still okay."

"I am done then?" she asked hopefully.

"No, I'm afraid not. You haven't cleared the haematoma just yet. Sometimes it takes a few attempts. Go back over to him and drill again." With the additional light Cyborg had a clear view into Robin and he quickly located a small split on Robin's appendix. It would now be a relatively straightforward matter of removing the organ completely. Reaching down beside himself, Cyborg picked up the scalpel again and prepared to sever the tissue holding the appendix in place.

"Starfire, this time drill one centimetre to the right of the previous burr hole," Cyborg instructed.

Taking a deep breath, she carefully moved her finger to the new location and clicked the power drill on. She gently lowered it and pressed against Beast Boy for the second time, gritting her teeth at the horrible sound made by his splitting skull. A thin line of blood spurted outward from the hole, splashing on Starfire's chest and stomach. The power drill fell from her hands to the floor and Starfire stared down at the warm liquid on her, letting out a terrified gasp. She whipped around, facing Cyborg, and looked at him uncomprehendingly. Blood dripped from her violet top onto her bare flesh and skirt and she held her bloodied hands outward, quivering uncontrollably. "I…I…"

Cyborg rushed away from Robin and past Starfire to Beast Boy's side, bending over and staring intently at his skull. He placed one hand on Beast Boy's throat and found that the pulse was beginning to speed up to a healthy rate.

Starfire was frozen where she stood, her back now to Cyborg. With a smile on his face Cyborg walked around her and looked directly into her eyes, which were locked in place. "It's okay, Star. Beast Boy is alright."

Slowly her pupils moved to meet Cyborg's stare.

He tenderly placed his hands around hers. "You relieved the pressure on his skull and partially cleared the haematoma. You just saved his life."

Her hands gradually stopped shaking and she mouthed several words, but Cyborg could not tell what they were.

"Beast Boy is fine. He can rest for a while without risk of anything happening to him. Now, I've almost removed Robin's appendix, so once I'm done with him I'll finish clearing out the haematoma and close up BB's scalp." Cyborg paused for a moment but Starfire still did not speak. "I can tell you're still a little in shock. But you did great, Star. So why don't you take a rest? You want to do that?"

Starfire nodded slightly and Cyborg released her hands. Without taking a step she lowered herself to the floor using the bed as a brace, her eyes still staring straight ahead somewhat blankly, and fell onto her side awkwardly.

Cyborg leaned down and rubbed Starfire's shoulder. Her eyes were closed and it appeared as though she had already passed out. "Looks like you were Beast Boy's little miracle," he said with a smile.

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I really hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I was venturing into unfamiliar territory with the medical aspect. As for Raven, she currently remains unaccounted for.

I felt the perfect reason for the distance between her and mother was to have Raven separated from her mother at a young age, and I hope that came across well. The thing I love most about this particular story is the chance it's given me to explore and create more of Raven's past. If it hasn't been painfully obvious before this, she is my favourite character.

Anyways, my hectic period is almost over, which means all of you won't have to wait so long for the next chapter. Lucky you.


	7. Clash of the Titans

So here I am, after what must have felt like a painfully long break without an update. Believe me, I wanted this chapter to be done a long time ago, but I was struck with the most frustrating bout of writer's block. But it all finally came together. I apologize for taking so darn long and I certainly hope no one doubted that I'd return. With any luck the wait will have been worth it. Enjoy!

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Emerging from a deep sleep, Starfire's senses slowly returned to her, and she briefly struggled to lift her remarkably heavy eyelids. Her head throbbed with a burning intensity and it felt as though her forehead was actually on fire. She ran her hands over her face and then let them flop to her sides, feeling them come in contact with something very soft. Starfire turned her head to the left and saw that she was lying in her own bed. Looking across her room to the window, she could see that darkness had fallen outside. Even from her position she could see the sparkle of several stars over the horizon in the night sky. She glanced away from the window and up at her own ceiling, trying to remember when she had passed out. The last thought she had was of Beast Boy, lying broken and bloodied atop one of the beds in the medical bay.

Though she felt weak, Starfire swung her legs out over the edge of her rounded bed and sat still for a moment, taking a deep breath. A discolouration on the inside of her left hand caught her eye, and slowly she turned over her hands, which were covered in dried blood. Starfire scrapped off small bits of the red material from one of her fingers and then climbed to her feet. Her knees buckled slightly when she straightened upright, but Starfire maintained her balance and lurched out of the room.

The hallways of the Tower were completely empty and devoid of all sound as Starfire crept through them. There was something that felt different in the corridors, an intangible darkness, and it sat uneasy with her. For a moment it even felt like someone was watching her, causing Starfire to nervously look over her shoulder. Stumbling into the washroom, she turned the faucet on as hot as it would go and carefully washed off all traces of the blood on her hands, splashing water onto her stomach afterward to clean the rest of the blood off. She grabbed a towel and ran it over her skin, knowing she would not be able to remove the stains from her skirt and top for a while yet. A chill ran down her spine when she entered the hallway once again, and she continued on toward the medical bay, though with a certain amount of trepidation in her stomachs.

"Look who's up and awake," Cyborg said when Starfire gingerly walked through the open doorway.

"Hi Cyborg," she replied.

"How do you feel?"

"My head is hurting. And I am quite thirsty."

Cyborg turned around in his chair and picked up a glass from the top of the desk. "I got myself some water a little while ago. There's still some left."

"Thank you," Starfire said, taking the glass from him and gulping down what remained. "What time is it?"

"Just coming up for nine thirty. You've been asleep for a good nine hours."

"I still feel exhausted." Starfire looked at Robin, and then Beast Boy. Both looked peaceful, their chests rising and falling rhythmically. "How are they doing?" she asked.

"Very well," Cyborg answered. "I removed Robin's appendix, cleaned out everything from the rupture and then re-bandaged his burns. And thanks to you, Beast Boy is doing just fine. I finished draining his haematoma and bandaged his scalp. I've got both of them on IV drips for the time being, which will help them recover their strength when they wake up."

"Do you expect that to be soon?"

"Well, Robin's body had to recover from a lot of shock, plus the emergency operation, so I'm not expecting him to wake up for at least another day. But BB could wake up at any moment. I put him on painkillers, so he shouldn't feel anything when he comes to."

Starfire nodded slowly, barely processing the words Cyborg had just said. Days of intense stress, combined with little sleep and sparse amounts of food, had finally brought her to the breaking point. The knowledge that she had come painfully close to losing both Robin and Beast Boy, along with the nagging thought that Raven could already be dead, had taken too much of a toll on her system. Tears poured out from her eyes and her hands shook. For several seconds she whimpered softly, but that quickly turned to violent sobs, making her chest uncomfortably constricted.

Cyborg came over to where she stood and he pulled Starfire up against his chest, tightly wrapping his arms around her. Neither of them said a word for a long time, merely holding each other and acting as reassurance that, despite everything, they were still a family and each of them would do whatever it took to help one another.

"What are we going to do?" Starfire asked, sniffing as she finished speaking.

After a short pause Cyborg said, "I'm not sure."

Starfire stepped back, keeping her eyes fixed on Cyborg's. "We must go in search of Raven."

Cyborg sighed and shook his head. "I can't. At least not while BB and Robin are still unconscious. And there's no way you're going alone."

She wiped away the tears from her cheeks with the palm of her hands, and a firm determination spread across her face. "Then we will wait for one of them to awaken. After that we cannot wait any longer. It is time to find Raven."

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A swirling breeze flitted through the air around Raven, rustling the strands of her violet hair. Standing by herself at the edge of the Azarathian plain, she stared out into the void, truly grasping for the first time just how massive the expanse reached outward in all directions. Azarath was a densely populated haven, yet she felt alone. It was not due to the fact that no one was around her at the moment, but because of something else entirely.

A plain, unassuming, ruby coloured coffin sat beside Raven, and her hand was placed upon its lid. For close to an hour her hand had remained there, unwavering, while the passing of that time was merely a blur to her. Inside was the body of Azar, High Priestess of Azarath and mentor to Raven. The ailment discovered within her three months previous had quickly intensified and worsened, leaving Azar weak and broken. The healers of Azarath could do nothing to cure the sickness and hope for her recovery faded. Raven was the only person with her when Azar passed away, and her last words were indicative of her teachings.

"_Do not grieve for me, my child, but control your emotions. Show immunity from sadness, fear and hatred. And forever guard against joy, pleasure and love. These feelings leave you vulnerable to the darkness within you. Only through apathy can you shield against it and wield the power you possess."_

She tilted her head to the side so she could look upon the coffin. Raven knew Azar would have disapproved of her next decision—if not outright forbid her from carrying it out. Yet somehow, deep within her soul, Raven knew it to be right. She had been, and still was, unsure of so much in her life, but this was certain.

Soft crunching broke through the silence that had settled over the dusty, barren plain, the resonance of footsteps assuming its place.

"Raven."

The voice stirred something within her, and even with Raven's back facing the white clothed woman, she knew exactly who it was. Though years had passed, a visit on this day was not unexpected.

"My child."

Raven let her hand fall from the coffin and turned around, staring straight into a pair of violet eyes as beautiful as her own. "Arella," she replied.

Arella took a further step forward and raised her hand as if to touch Raven's shoulder, but hesitated and lowered it again, having reconsidered the action. "I know how difficult this day must be for you. Words cannot be capable of comforting you."

For a moment she remained silent, finally asking, "Why have you come?"

"To offer you my comfort anyways."

"I appreciate the effort," she answered. Turning to look out at the empty reaches surrounding the city, Raven said, "But I don't need your comfort."

"I only want to be here for you. Like a mother should be."

"Eight years!" Raven exclaimed, whipping around to face Arella once more. "It's been eight years since I was taken away from you. When in that time have you _ever_ tried to support me? To be with me?"

"It was not by choice, I can assure you of that," she replied, lowering her head solemnly. "Azar forbid me from seeing you. She swore it was for your protection."

Raven's rigid facial expression and rough demeanour softened to show repressed sorrow and frustration—her true emotions. "Why didn't you at least try?"

"Not a day has gone by when I didn't think of you. And every one of those thoughts brought immense pain to my heart, knowing that I couldn't be with you." Arella positioned herself directly in front of Raven and reached up, tucking a strand of hair behind her daughter's ear. When she did not pull away, Arella placed her hand on Raven's cheek. "My beautiful daughter," she said softly.

Raven closed her eyes for several seconds. Over the years she had forgotten how the touch of another human felt, how much warmth there was in simple contact. Stepping away from Arella and severing that contact was a decision Raven hated to make, but knew it was necessary if she was to accomplish the task she had set before herself.

Arella seemed upset when her daughter backed away, but she hid her emotions as well as Raven.

"Mother," Raven began, "I cannot remain here in Azarath. I'm leaving."

"Leaving?" Arella replied. "Leaving for where?"

"Earth."

"Raven, you cannot possibly be safer there. You know this."

"In three years, when I turn eighteen, I'm going to cause death and suffering. It won't matter where I am when that happens. But I cannot consciously allow myself to cause the destruction of Azarath. I can't be here."

"You are certain this is what you want?"

She nodded, though with some reluctance. "I am. And maybe, just maybe, Azarath will be spared if I'm on Earth."

"That is a tremendously selfless act, Raven. I have always known of the inner strength you possess. And I also know that I cannot hope to change your mind, so instead I wish you luck on your journey. May the spirit of Lady Azar guide you."

"Goodbye, mother," Raven said. Slowly she stepped away, stopping after several feet to look back over her shoulder. "I will think often of this city and its people," she added. With that being said Raven continued forward, refraining from looking back again, and more sure than ever her decision was the right one.

Eight years previous Arella had been forced to endure the sight of her little daughter walking out of her life. Once more the sight was cast before her eyes, and once more she did all she could to remain strong. "Goodbye, my precious Raven," she said softly. "May you forever be safe."

----------

Cyborg leaned on the wall on the far side of the medical room, staring forward blankly, while Starfire sat cross-legged against one of the perpendicular walls, neither saying a word. Time ticked by at an agonizingly slow pace, yet there was nothing either Titan could do for the moment. Cyborg could not leave while both Robin and Beast Boy remained unconscious, and he forbid Starfire from pursuing Raven alone. Though they would be severely weak, it was agreed that when Beast Boy regained consciousness he and Starfire would leave the Tower in search of their missing friend. With each passing minute Starfire grew more nervous for the well being and safety of Raven, all the while increasingly frustrated at her inability to take action.

Finally after a few hours had seemingly stretched into days Beast Boy stirred. He let out a raspy cough and kicked his legs, slowly opening his eyes.

"Hey BB," Cyborg said with a smile as he walked over to his bedside. "Good to see you awake again."

"Robin," Beast Boy replied, looking around. "Is Robin okay?"

"He is alright," Starfire answered, placing her hand on Beast Boy's shoulder. "Robin will recover. But he must rest for now."

"How are you feeling?" Cyborg asked.

"Pretty groggy. And my head kinda hurts." Beast Boy reached up and ran his hand over his forehead and then to the side of his head, stopping with a high level of surprise upon feeling bare skin where his mess of hair should have been. "Ah! What the…? What happened?"

"You lost consciousness," Cyborg said. "When you were thrown against the wall your head was hit particularly hard, causing a great deal of internal bleeding. So much so that it was beginning to drown your brain cells. And with no escape, pressure continued to build as more and more blood accumulated. You needed an emergency procedure to drain all the blood and relieve pressure."

"Whoa." Beast Boy lowered his eyebrows and very gently touched the bandages that Cyborg had wrapped around part of his head. "Am I okay?"

Cyborg nodded. "You can thank Starfire. She's the one who performed the operation. She drilled several holes into your skull, which evacuated the blood and saved your life."

Beast Boy turned his head and smiled upward at Starfire. "Thanks, Star."

Smiling back, she said, "I am sorry that I had to shave half of your head."

Beast Boy chuckled lightly, but immediately placed his hand on his ribs and gritted his teeth in pain.

"You were really banged up," Cyborg said. "I've given you plenty of pain killers, but you're still going to go through some rough patches."

Beast Boy paused for a moment, partially afraid to ask. "What about Raven?"

"We don't know," Cyborg answered, shaking his head sadly. "Nothing has happened since she left."

"We've got to go after her," Beast Boy said loudly. "The more time that goes by the more likely it is she'll be hurt."

"I was waiting for you to awaken," replied Starfire. "You and I are going to search for her."

"Cyborg, what about you?"

"I have to stay here with Robin. He's recovering well, but he can't be left alone."

"So it's just you and me," Beast Boy said to Starfire.

"I can give you a shot of adrenaline," Cyborg said. "That should help a little with your grogginess."

"Okay." Beast Boy watched Cyborg turn away to sort through his medicine and then looked up at Starfire. "So how do we find her?"

"I have spent much time thinking on that. And I believe I know where we will locate her."

"Where's that?"

"In the ruins of the old library where Raven became the portal. If Acheron wishes to succeed in resurrecting Trigon, I believe he will first be required to find places where his presence still exists. It would be familiar to him."

"That place would be the greatest source of his energy."

Cyborg returned holding a needle in his right hand. "And with any luck Acheron will need to recover his strength before he can fully utilize Raven's powers. All we can hope for is that assuming control of her body took a lot out of him. That's the only reason I can think of for why nothing has happened just yet."

"At the moment we have no other options," Starfire said.

Beast Boy watched Cyborg remove the IV needle from his forearm and let it fall onto the bed. Once done, Cyborg turned Beast Boy's arm slightly and placed the adrenaline needle on his skin, puncturing the flesh.

Cyborg withdrew the point and placed it on the small table beside him. "This stuff is somewhat slower acting than what I administered to Robin. It'll take a little while before you feel any better, but it'll last longer."

Beast Boy swung his legs out and pushed himself off the bed, standing upright beside Starfire.

"Good luck you two," Cyborg said. "Bring our girl home."

"We will," Starfire replied. "Watch over Robin. Keep him safe."

Beast Boy made his way over to the large window and slid one of the panes of glass open, while Starfire stopped to look at Robin for a moment. When she turned away and proceeded to the window, Beast Boy had already morphed into a bald eagle and was perched on the ledge. He flapped his large wings once and took off into the air without making a sound, followed closely by Starfire, who leapt upward and shot out of the Tower.

Standing at the window, Cyborg intently watched Starfire and Beast Boy, beyond even the point at which they disappeared from view over the horizon in the night sky.

----------

Gravel crunched under Starfire's feet when she touched down in the very centre of Jump City's old downtown core. Beast Boy hovered several feet above the ground and transformed back to his human form, softly landing on his feet. The area had undergone rapid construction in the previous year, seeing several massive office buildings and condominiums climb ever higher, along with several blocks of affordable housing and a new elementary school, but where the library once stood remained empty. The actual structure had been bulldozed to the ground by the city on the Titans' orders, and the entrance into the underground labyrinth sealed shut.

"Come on, let's get in there," Beast Boy said, quickly walking over to the small steel shed that stood above the main chamber.

Starfire firmly grasped two thick metal chains that hung from the door and fiercely pulled backward. Several of the links bent slowly and then snapped completely, falling to the ground at her feet. Repositioning her stance, Starfire wrapped both her hands around the large, circular padlock attached to the door, as there was no handle to speak of. She gritted her teeth and steadily twisted her upper body to gain more leverage, and gradually the steel buckled under the immense pressure and folded outward, leaving a gap of perhaps half a foot. Starfire let go of the padlock and breathed in deeply before taking hold of the contorted steel, twisting and pulling more of it away from the frame until there was a hole several feet across.

She released her hold and flew straight into the hole without hesitation, creating a glowing ball of green around her left hand that illuminated the narrow corridor. After several seconds there was a sudden drop downward, which she readily followed. For nearly a minute she led Beast Boy down the vertical shaft, her heart pounding with trepidation, unsure of what she might find.

She emerged into an immense chamber and slowly descended toward the ground, carefully looking in all directions. The room was utterly bare, devoid of even the simplest features. Starfire allowed the green circling her hand to dissipate, for the chamber was already well lit, though in perhaps the least desirable way—the markings of Scath covered all the walls, casting everything in a pale red. The air circulating through the chamber was exceedingly dry and thick, and Starfire immediately found herself short of breath

Upon landing on the ground Beast Boy gazed up at the markings of Scath, visibly unnerved by seeing them again. Waves of painful memories flashed through his mind—seeing Raven become the portal, knowing he and the other Titans were the last living humans on the planet, watching the city burn all around him. Though Raven had returned the earth to its former beauty, these were visions Beast Boy had never expected to see again. The symbols of Trigon made him relive those memories, and he winced in pain and grabbed his forehead.

Starfire quickly placed her hand on his shoulder. "Is everything okay?"

"I think so," he replied. "It's just…I…seeing the markings bring back some painful memories." Beast Boy shook his head and looked away from the markings, fixing his vision instead on the centre of the room, where a black silhouette remained still. "That's her," he said quietly, pointing forward. "I know that's Raven over there."

He and Starfire slowly moved toward her, but neither of them spoke a word or even took a breath. As they came closer it was apparent Raven was sitting with her back to them, but there was no way to know if she was aware of their presence or not.

"Raven?" Beast Boy asked. "Is that you?"

Slowly her head turned, but not enough to allow her face to be visible. Without speaking a word she rose to her feet and pivoted around, covered almost entirely by her cloak.

"We have come to bring you back with us," Starfire said hopefully.

Her hands appeared from beneath her cloak, but did not remain bare for long. Streaks of black swirled around them, growing in size until both her hands were encapsulated.

Beast Boy's eyes widened and he took half a step back, but he did all he could to steady himself. "Please Raven, we don't have to do this."

"Friend, is there not some part of you still left?"

Crackles of dark energy flowed over her tightly closed fists. Raven stood motionless, brilliant white emanating forth from her eyes, illuminating her pale skin. The expression on her face remained passive, unmoved by the pleas of her friends. Snapping her hand upward, Raven released an arch shaped blast that slammed against Starfire, impelling her backward fiercely.

Dropping to the ground, thick green hair burst out of Beast Boy's skin and smooth fangs protruded from his mouth as he assumed the form of a leopard. He lowered his body closer to the ground, tensing the muscles in his hind legs, and leapt at Raven with his front paws extended outward. She slid forward low on the soles of her boots and pushed her palms straight up, directly onto the underbelly of an airborne Beast Boy. A flash of black erupted beneath him, thrusting Beast Boy upward in an awkward spin.

Disrupting the tumultuous rotations by morphing into a hummingbird, Beast Boy dived toward the ground and shifted back to a human, landing softly on his feet. He whirled around to face Raven, taking a harsh blast to his shin from her that sent a ripple of pain through his leg and buckled his knee. Raven directed her pointer and middle fingers at Beast Boy, unleashing a slender streak of dark energy from the tips that cleanly sliced through the outer part of his right bicep. Beast Boy let out a howl and clutched at the wound with his left hand. The grey glove rapidly grew crimson and warm blood percolated from the gaps between his digits.

Raven ran her lithe fingers around her leotard, retrieving two undulating daggers from the loosely hanging belt encircling her waist. She took one step in Beast Boy's direction, but was pulled backward and gasped as Starfire tightly wrapped her arms around Raven from behind, forcing her limbs down stiffly at her side and restricting her movement.

"I do not wish to hurt you, Raven," Starfire said softly into her ear. "You must fight it!"

With her feet dangling slightly above the ground, Raven remained still for a moment. Then she smashed the back of her skull into Starfire's face with a savage degree of strength. A pained groan rushed out from Starfire's mouth and her head sunk backward. Spinning the daggers upward, Raven flicked her wrists, slitting the skin just below Starfire's elbows and breaking her solid hold.

Raven rotated her body and lunged at an awkwardly balanced Starfire, driving her foot into the Tamaranean's uncovered gut and knocking her back a step. Twisting her upper body, Raven loosed a charge at Beast Boy's chest, aggressively propelling him onto his back, and then pivoted to face Starfire again, narrowly missing with a vicious swipe of one dagger but connecting with a potent strike of dark energy from her other hand.

A drop of blood trickled from the lengthy slice on Starfire's right arm, splashing onto her knee as she clumsily climbed to her feet, delicately holding her arms close to her. Raven slipped the daggers back onto her belt and boldly strode forward, her face devoid of emotion. Starfire gingerly raised one hand and launched a small starbolt, which Raven effortlessly deflected with a wave of her hand. Timidity exhibited on Starfire's face; she was undeniably uneasy about attacking one of her best friends. Unfortunately, Raven had no such compunctions.

Starfire stared at her approaching friend, a quiver of fear in her emerald eyes. She lifted her other hand and closed it into a loose fist, creating a pulsating green orb around it, but hesitated a fraction of a second too long. Raven swung her right arm upward in a wide circle, emitting a ball that surged toward Starfire. Too close for avoidance, Starfire instinctively shielded herself with her arms, shrieking as the shot burned against her torn skin, painfully cauterizing the wounds.

Raven's right arm remained outstretched, with swirls of black encircling her open hand. The swirls expanded and rapidly overtook her entire hand, until the dark energy erupted outward in the form of a fist, billowing through the air and truculently grasping Starfire's torso. The massive extremities mimicked Raven as she slowly closed her own fingers, suffocating the scarlet haired girl. With her one free arm, Starfire clutched at the black hand, desperately trying to loosen its grip, but found no success.

Finally the features on Raven's face changed, showing emotion for the first time. She smiled.

Beast Boy rolled over to his stomach, propped himself up on his arms, and spit blood out from his mouth. He awkwardly climbed to his knees, struggling to maintain his balance, and faced the others. "Raven, stop!" he shouted. "She's your friend!"

She partially turned and raised her left hand, spacing each of her fingers as far apart from one another as could be done. Beast Boy felt a forceful tug on his legs and stared down in abject horror at his feet, now covered in black energy that steadily climbed upward to his knees. He struggled to break free from the frightening advance, but found no progress, and a painfully cold sensation overtook all other feelings. It was not long before Beast Boy's entire body below his neck was utterly covered in intertwining dark energy, squeezing inward and slowly suffocating him.

Pressure built on his chest the moment he was lifted off the ground and erupted in a burst of tremendous pain when the black dissipated, Beast Boy having been thrown backward with incredible ferocity. His vision blurred while he remained airborne, the walls and markings of Scath merging into unrecognizable patches of grey and red, and he let out a grunt of agony at the first impact with the ground, which tossed his legs upward and over his head, spiralling him end over end up until the second impact occurred. Beast Boy bounced harshly and slammed into the ground with his left shoulder, then flipped about uncontrollably and scrapped the right side of his body from the thigh to ribs, tearing much of his clothing and peeling away large chunks of flesh. He was almost unable to breathe when he skidded to a stop on his stomach, but could certainly not find the strength to return to his feet.

Still Starfire clawed and fought against the hand of energy crushing the very life out of her, restricting any air from entering her lungs. She gasped and wheezed frantically and clenched her fist, pounding with all her strength against it. "Pl…Please…"

Raven smiled once more. "I am touched by your determination," she said. Her lips were moving freely, and it was definitely Raven's voice, but Starfire knew it was not her actually speaking.

"Consider this an act of uncharacteristic sympathy," Raven continued, "that I should eliminate any hope which continues to linger in your mind. Your friend is unable to hear you. She cannot see you. And there does not exist even the slightest of possibilities that she can feel you or your suffering. Raven is completely and inexorably under my power and therefore any hope she might have had of regaining control has been utterly extinguished. For all intents and purposes, your friend is dead. You do yourself a disservice by clinging to false hope."

Raven cocked her head to the side. "Can you comprehend the hopelessness of the situation you find yourself in?" she asked, closing her fist more tightly.

Starfire winced under an increased assault from the black energy grasping her torso, but the flicker of determination in her eyes did not leave and once more she struck at the black with her own fist.

"My," she said, "you are very motivated, are you not? The green one lies broken, you are alone in this contest, and still you are compelled forward by the specious hope you hold in your heart." Raven narrowed her eyes into mere slits. "Allow me to extricate that hope."

Raven swung her arm downward, smashing Starfire face first into the ground, sending up a storm cloud of dust and dirt. She was lifted away from the ground so suddenly that the pain barely had time to register, while the sight of everything spread out before her was obscured, for one eyelid was already droopily hanging mostly closed. Warm blood flowed from her forehead down her cheeks, dripping off her chin and falling through the dust wafting in the air around her.

Starfire's long hair whooshed to one side as she was thrust across the empty expanse of the chamber, savagely smacking against one of the walls and pounding the side of her head into the solid construct, leaving jagged cracks that extended outward. By now her throat and lungs burned from lack of oxygen and it was with a bizarre sense of relief that she found herself soaring through the air without the black energy suffocating her, which had finally faded away. Her chest and stomach crashed into the ground first, forcing the very last gasp of air out from her mouth. The momentum brought her forward still further, twisting and shaking, until finally she lay still, one of her legs below the knee awkwardly curled underneath her.

Without a second glance Raven's physical features vanished into a mere shadow and then dropped downward, disappearing into a dark circle beneath her.

----------

Cyborg stood at the entrance to the main room in the Tower and stretched his arms up and out from his body as far as his joints would allow, opening his mouth in a wide yawn that lasted several long seconds. He stumbled down the few stairs and lumbered over to the small kitchen, holding a glass under the tap and filling it with cold water. He looked to his left out the massive glass windows, glancing at the sun that was peaking over the horizon, ushering in the dawn. Several hours had passed since Starfire and Beast Boy had left the Tower, but until Robin was awake Cyborg knew he could not do anything but remain with him, excluding a water run every couple of hours.

With his glass full, Cyborg tilted the bottom of it upward, letting the cold liquid run down his throat, shifting his position so that his back was to the window. While he drank a shadow appeared on the far wall, illuminated by the sparse sunlight. He whipped around to stare out the window, letting the glass fall from his fingers and shatter against the tiles.

Raven hovered just outside the Tower, the wind kicking her robe around wildly. Cyborg looked at her uncomprehendingly, his eyes wide in near panic, while she stared back at him with a devilishly wicked smile spread across her face.

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Uh, my creativity has left me. So it's up to you, the wonderful readers, to create your own suspenseful cliffhanger.

I promise the next chapter will come much, much sooner than the long wait for this one.


	8. Lone Sentinel

Let me just start by apologizing for taking so darn long to get this up. I'm just finding that I have less and less time to work on my writing, which frustrates me. I'm actually only half way done this chapter, but since you've all waited so patiently, I decided I would break it up into two separate chapters. So this chapter is really only the first half of what was going to be chapter 8 originally. This means you get a shorter chapter than you would have. But it also means you get to read another chapter weeks earlier than if I kept it as one big chapter. And I figured each of you would prefer a shorter chapter now than a longer one several weeks from now. Enjoy!

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His hand slowly, painfully, slid forward along the rough stone ground, pushing aside several small pebbles and bits of debris. Brown splotches on Beast Boy's glove steadily expanded as more and more dirt clung to his wet blood, while he delicately held his ribcage with his right hand. Clawing his way farther, Beast Boy winced softly, biting his lower lip in a vain attempt to quell the pain. A tremor ran down his left arm, resulting from the increasing strain placed on it, and Beast Boy awkwardly kicked his legs, propelling himself forward slightly more.

After several agonizing minutes he finally found himself lying beside Starfire. He propped himself up on one elbow and gently touched her shoulder with his other hand. "Starfire?"

Her entire body was covered in dirt that clung to sweat and blood from dozens of lacerations. Beast Boy looked at one of her arms, which had been severely twisted and currently was underneath Starfire from the elbow down. Working very delicately he managed to slide her arm out but cringed when he did, barely able to look at it. The entire wrist was black with tiny spots of dark purple and all five fingers had been gruesomely mangled, each bent at horribly wicked angles.

Once more Beast Boy softly touched her shoulder, repeating her name as close to her ears as he could lean forward. It was not until her head slowly turned toward him that Beast Boy could be sure she was actually alive, and Starfire partially opened one of her eyes. Rapid swelling had almost completely covered the right side of her face, leaving much of it a pinkish-red and making it impossible for her to open her eye.

Beast Boy eagerly looked directly into her eye, running the palm of his hand along the side of Starfire's head. "Star?" he asked, his voice quivering. "Starfire, can you hear me?"

She groaned softly and opened her eye slightly more. For a moment her lips moved without any sound, then she managed to quietly say his name.

"You're going to be okay," he said reassuringly. "I'm going to get you back to the Tower."

"Can…cannot feel my arm."

"Don't worry about that, okay? Just let me help you up, and together we're going to get out of here. Moving you is going to hurt, but I promise everything will be fine once we're home."

----------

His movements ceased and his breathing grew shallow and raspy. Cyborg merely stared out at Raven, whose eyes shone brighter than the sun that slowly crept over the horizon. She raised her arms up and outward with a calmness that chilled the very inner core of Cyborg, and the entire stretch of glass in front of her was overcome with black. Pinpricks gradually appeared from one end to the other, steadily expanding into visible cracks that snaked across the glass in all directions. With a high pitched shriek it shattered into hundreds of pieces, though Raven's hold did not dissipate.

Cyborg's eyes widened in horror as each shard of glass rotated in the air, leaving the jagged, razor sharp edges pointing directly at him. Raven thrust both her arms forward and dozens of lethal segments screamed through the air toward Cyborg, who frantically dived to his left, landing in a roll and promptly returning to his feet in a heartbeat. Glass exploded into tiny slivers against the walls and floor in a torrent of unceasing carnage, each only narrowly missing Cyborg. A massive shard appeared out of the corner of his right eye and he screeched to a stop, letting the glass tear past mere inches from his jugular. Cyborg pivoted on the balls of his feet and lunged in the opposite direction, but was immediately whipped around fiercely as one fragment sliced into his left shoulder, propelling him backward and sending him crashing into the wall.

Opening his mouth in a deafening howl while on the ground, he spewed forth blue streaks at Raven from his sonic cannon. She uplifted her hands, surrounded by black energy that ebbed and flowed like fire, and effortlessly deflected the first blast with an outward swirl of her left arm, followed by a swift jab and an upward arch by her right hand that countered two successive shots. With a flash of black her entire body vanished and one final azure burst harmlessly exited the Tower into the sky.

Crackles and sparks of electricity leapt and danced around the triangular segment of glass protruding from Cyborg's shoulder. Gritting his teeth, he ripped the shard out, threw it to the ground and climbed to his feet, once more extending his right fist outward to reveal the wide barrel of his cannon. With his potent weapon nervously pointed directly in front of him, Cyborg slowly walked forward, scanning the entire room for any sign of Raven, all the while crunching down on bits of glass with each footstep. The twilight produced an awkward glare that made vision slightly problematic, but Cyborg pressed on.

A hazy black circle appeared in the centre of the room, white specks swirling and twisting counter clockwise among it, and Raven soared out from it, launching a streak of energy from her right hand that slammed into Cyborg before he could bring his gun to bare. The force of it thrust him upward off the ground and he landed painfully on his back, sliding several metres through splinters of glass that scraped and scratched his frame. The shock of it left him disoriented, and he rapidly blinked in an attempt to clear his vision. Blurry haze quickly took on definite forms and each area of the large room gained clarity, allowing him to see clearly.

Raven now hovered several metres in the air, holding both outstretched hands high above her hand. A small dot appeared between her palms, rushing outward into a pulsating orb of pure dark energy that overtook her hands up to the forearms. Ripples coursed over its fluid surface, shimmering in the morning sun, and dozens of black streaks shot out from it in all directions, savagely bursting against the walls, ceiling and floor. Cyborg rolled to his right and scrambled to his feet, already in a full run with bits and pieces of ceramic exploding upward all the while. Clouds of dust rapidly filled the area, broken by the unyielding onslaught of black discharges that shook the very foundations of the room.

Cyborg stayed low with one of his arms instinctively shielding his head and sprinted from one area to another, twisting and arching his body continually to avoid each salvo. He was unable to react swiftly enough when a segment of floor directly in front of him shattered apart violently, and as his foot came down Cyborg was sent toppling forward, banging and rolling uncontrollably. Thrusting his left hand out Cyborg was able to partially slow himself and he used the opportunity to twist onto his side, pointing his cannon upward at Raven and loosing a powerful charge. The dark energy above her head vanished abruptly and Raven swooped several metres lower in avoidance, launching a ferocious blast from both her hands that surged downward and completely tore through the floor where Cyborg had lay only a heartbeat before.

Raven pulled her right arm back, gathering a storm of energy so powerful that her hand trembled, and heaved forward as Cyborg leapt over a craggily remnant of the couch. The resulting outflow of energy overtook Cyborg's entire body, savagely hurling him out of the Tower through the now open window. With his eyes watering from the onrush of air and the crushing pain on his chest and while feverishly shaking, he struggled to hold his left arm outstretched, managing to fire his hand at the exterior of the building. It punched through a large pane of glass and wrapped around a hand railing, causing the cable to go taut and forcibly yanking Cyborg upward. He closed his eyes and lowered his head a moment before he struck the glass, which utterly shattered inward and snapped his hold on the railing. The cable connecting his hand to his arm whipped around the room freely while he was still airborne, and Cyborg slammed head first into the floor, flipping once and landing hard on his back.

He lay still staring up at the ceiling, feeling the soft vibration in his arm as the long cable slowly pulled itself in. When his hand securing itself in place with a click, Cyborg rolled over and pushed himself up onto his knees, gagging from a scratching in the back of his throat. He coughed loudly, releasing a swarm of dust and other particles, and then rubbed the side of his head as he climbed to his feet. His mouth was so dry he was unable to even spit out the remaining dust, so he forced himself to cough several times, clutching his knees as he heaved.

Cyborg leaned backward and then twisted his body to the right, stretching his back after the painful fall. After no more than four steps forward he heard a strange noise behind him and turned, feeling his heart skip a beat at the sight of Raven stepping out from a wavy, black portal along one of the corridor walls, her face spread wide in a smile. Cyborg shoved his cannon forward and emitted long blasts at Raven, steadily backing away faster until he was sprinting, turning just enough to allow for a sonic discharge every other second.

Raven slid close to the floor to avoid the first blast and then leapt upward to the ceiling, launching herself forward with tremendous rapidity and quickly overcoming Cyborg, gracefully twisting her body so that she landed on her feet directly in front of him. Cyborg's eyes widened in shock and he arched backward, desperately trying to slow himself, but could not react quickly enough. Raven's right hand glowed black and she bent her knees slightly, sidestepping at the last moment and smacking the small of Cyborg's back with her energized hand, sending him tumbling to the floor.

Cyborg frantically rolled onto his back and thrust his cannon toward her, expecting a deadly attack that did not come. Instead Raven shuffled her feet and brought both her fists up into a fighter's stance, holding her right fist near her chin and her left one foot away from the other, all while keeping her elbows close to her ribs. Slowly Cyborg lowered his cannon, letting his hand reassume it's shape, and stood up, watching Raven curiously.

"You're still in there, Raven. Aren't you?" he asked.

The corner of her lips curled upward in amusement and she lunged forward, swiping with her right fist at Cyborg and connecting hard against his cheek, snapping his head to the side. He countered with a wild punch that Raven artfully swerved away from, and when a second attack came she leaned under it, firmly grabbing his wrist and jabbing the underside of his elbow with her other hand. She pounded her own elbow into his stomach and then aggressively drove the bottom of her foot into the inside of his knee, buckling his leg and forcing him forward. Leaping up from the ground she contorted her body suddenly, bringing the outside of her right foot around in a circle that completed its rotation by slamming against the side of Cyborg's head, violently spinning him around.

He stumbled but remained on his feet, whirling around to face her and lashing out with both his hands while stepping forward. Raven twisted her body between each strike and leapt backward, landing on the vertical corridor wall, and then pounced off it with an astounding amount of momentum from her legs. Rotating her body one hundred and eighty degrees in mid-air, she rammed into Cyborg's chest with both her feet, tossing him back against the wall ferociously. Raven raised her right hand and motioned toward herself with it, and immediately an unstoppable wave of dark energy burst out from the wall behind Cyborg, pushing him forward.

She slid to the left and spun around low to the ground, swiftly kicking Cyborg's right shin just above the ankle. The attack whipped his leg behind him and propelled his torso forward, sending him crashing into the floor and painfully scraping his face. Sparks continued to surge out from the slit in his shoulder, and Cyborg groaned loudly.

Raven floated upward close to the ceiling and held out her right hand with the palm facing downward. Slender streaks of black cascaded around her fingers and the entire stretch of hallway floor was covered by dark energy. Slowly Raven closed her fingers into a tight fist and with it cracks appeared beneath Cyborg until it all caved inward, breaking apart into countless segments and plummeting downward. Cyborg fell screaming, his body struck repeatedly and tossed around by massive chunks of stone, and his body bounced like a flimsy rag doll on impact with the floor far below him, instantly rendering him unconscious.

Raven did not bother to give Cyborg a second glance, but spun around and glided through the corridors of the Tower. It was not long before she found what she was looking for.

----------

His first sensation upon returning to consciousness was pain. A pain that echoed in the back of his skull and ran through every muscle down to the soles of his feet. Robin lifted his head slightly, looking around in the dark room, uneasy at the sheer emptiness of it. "Hello?"

When no answer came, Robin rolled onto his side and swung his legs out over the edge of the bed, painfully pulling himself up to a sitting position. Sharp burning erupted in his stomach and he clutched at it with his hand, groaning loudly. Keeping his hand on his ribs, he stood up and slowly shuffled across the room, barely able to lift his feet, and stopped in shock at the entrance to the Tower's hallways, where twisted metal and fragments covered much of the area. Robin rubbed the side of his head with his other hand, trying to remember what had happened. Nothing was clear to him. It was all a blank.

"Raven?" he called out, hearing it echo down the corridors. "Cyborg? Is anyone there?" He remained still for a moment, hoping to hear someone call back, and pressed on when there was no reply. The air was cold and the corridors very dark, illuminated only by sparse amounts of sunlight coming around one of the corners far ahead. Robin felt uneasy to see that the power was out. It seemed to signal a serious problem, one that none of the other Titans had managed to remedy.

Time stretched out in Robin's mind, making him feel as though far more of it had passed by the time he reached the main room. Without power none of the doors would open automatically, but fortunately the locking mechanisms disengaged themselves with an outage, allowing the doors to be opened manually. Robin slid the very tips of his bare hands into the space between the two doors, forcing them ever deeper and therefore opening the doors bit by bit. Finally the space was wide enough that Robin could easily slide them open, even despite his lack of strength.

The sight that greeted him upon entry to the main room left him horrified. The massive window on the far side had been completely shattered and there were shards of glass everywhere, some even partially embedded in the walls and floor. Cracks in the masonry, even large ones, appeared minor compared to the chucks and holes that riddled the room. He blinked his eyes several times and squinted, trying to adjust to the sudden brightness that streamed in from the now fully risen sun.

"Can anyone hear me?" he shouted. Robin sighed deeply, quietly saying to himself, "What happened in here?"

Robin stumbled down the steps and over to the system reboot console on the wall nearby. Though it was used primarily to activate security programs, it also had access to the Tower's main computer, allowing for innumerable operations. Robin was not the least bit surprised to find it smashed apart, sparks still shooting out from the dangling wires.

Even from where he was Robin could see that the main computer on the other side of the room had also been damaged beyond repair. Part of him had hoped it was still functional, because with it he could send out a transmission to all active communicators. Without the computer functioning, Robin knew he had lost one possible chance of figuring out what had happened in the Tower while—or before—he was unconscious.

The only option available to him now was to journey downward to the basement, where he would be able to manually restart the generator, possibly also providing him with an opportunity to figure out what had caused all this destruction. Ascending the few stairs leading to the entrance, Robin retraced his steps out of the main room and back down the dark hallway, turning at the first group of stairs. Slowly he took one step at a time, with one hand firmly gripping the handrail and the other continuing to brace his ribs. The task was made all the more difficult by the darkness that enveloped the Tower, other than the small amounts of light that crept in through the windows, periodically helping visibility. Still, most of the stairwell was dangerously dark.

At each level Robin stopped for a moment and stared out, but he could see no further damage. Never did he let one minute pass without calling out into the darkness, hoping each time someone would respond to him. Robin gasped as his right foot slipped on one of the steps, sending him careening awkwardly forward and spinning him into the railing hard. Though he managed to maintain his balance, searing pain filled his stomach and ribcage. Robin delicately touched the bandages covering his torso and was deeply relieved not to feel any flowing blood. Carefully he pushed himself up from the railing and continued downward, though at an even more reduced speed.

After a further two floors, tiny sparkles on the ground caught his eye. Stepping away from the stairs Robin could see that another window was missing, but jagged triangular fragments remained attached to the edge of the window frame. Sunlight was reflecting off the bits and pieces of glass scattered everywhere.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

He stumbled slightly when he started turning around, looking in every direction for any further signs that could finally tell him what had happened, and was shocked to see that the floor of an entire stretch of hallway had been completely blown away. Robin moved toward it slowly, being very careful the closer he came to the edge, unsure whether or not more of the brick would crumble away. Positioning himself as close to the edge as he was willing to get, Robin leaned forward and stared down. Chilled horror ran down his spine at what he saw.

"_Cyborg!"_ he screamed. Far below his friend remained unmoving, much of him buried under fallen debris. Robin spun around and quickly marched back to the stairs, gritting his teeth the entire time from the unyielding pain that surged through his entire body. He grabbed the handrail and pulled his body forward, using it to propel himself down the stairs faster than his legs alone could do. Once at ground level he found the strength necessary to jog to Cyborg's side and immediately began pushing off brick and rubble that covered his body below the waist. Stone gradually grew heavier as Robin's arms burned from exertion, but it would not deter him.

"I'll get you out of here," he said, desperation filling his voice. A horrific pain emerged in Robin's chest, overtaking all other pain he felt. Yet the pain was not physical. Seeing one of his best friends in dire circumstances, unsure if he was even still alive, produced Robin's suffering, and that was what allowed him to press on. His need to do whatever was necessary to save Cyborg suddenly made the pain produced by all his injuries fade away.

Despite this the limitations of the strength in his arms were all too evident. His weakened state made removing the stones and bricks a gruelling task, one that left him drained. Robin climbed up from his knees and grabbed the underside of both Cyborg's arms, pulling with all the strength his body would produce, slowly dragging him backward. Brick tumbled off Cyborg's bulky frame, but still Robin struggled with a body more than twice his weight, making progress agonizingly slow. He stumbled, falling over backward and wincing from the pain of more than three hundred pounds of metal collapsing onto his legs. Summoning a powerful cry of agony, Robin managed to pull himself out from under Cyborg, taking several deep breaths while lying flat on his back.

Once Robin was back on his feet, though somewhat shaky, he continued with the struggle to drag his comrade to the elevator. Robin's arms burned with pain and trembled uncontrollably, making it steadily more difficult to maintain his grip on Cyborg's triceps. Finally he let go of Cyborg and fell back against the wall, letting it hold him upright as he closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. There was still no power in the Tower, so the elevator was useless until Robin could restore the flow of electricity.

Robin limped back to the stairwell and followed it down two more stories, tightly holding the railing with his right hand and very carefully stepping down one step at a time. His legs were so heavy it felt as though they were made of lead and once below ground level the stairwell was so dark Robin was unaware tiny black spots were appearing in his vision. He was relieved to take the final step without having stumbled again.

The outline of the massive generator loomed in the middle of the blackened room. Robin cursed when his shin bashed into an object, nearly knocking him off his feet, but without further incident he reached the generator. Feeling along the side of the cold machine he found a large lever sticking out from it upward, which he firmly wrapped his hands around. He groaned with effort until there was a loud clank as the lever snapped downward into position, and Robin heard a slight hum from the generator. Shuffling to his left several feet he found the second lever necessary to restore power, which required even more strength to move. He stepped back, full of relief, when lights across the entire generator came on and with a _chug chug_ the room filled with sounds and lights hanging from the ceiling flickered to life.

Robin walked away from the generator hunched forward, slowly losing the last bits of strength his body had in reserve. When he reached the elevator he slapped his hand against the call button and stood still with his head hanging low and his eyes closed. He stumbled in when the doors opened and softly pressed the button that would take him to ground level. After dragging Cyborg into the elevator, Robin allowed himself several moments of reste while riding the elevator to the top level. It was a fortunate thing that Cyborg's room was the first room out of the elevator, but by the time Robin reached it his body was near its breaking point, and he knew it.

The door whooshed open and Robin heaved with the last bit of energy in order to get Cyborg as near to the charger as he could. Robin grabbed the thick cable and pulled it out from the wall, pressing down gently on a small patch on Cyborg's shoulder with his other hand that released part of the metal, revealing a large rectangular hole. The cable plugged into Cyborg easily and it immediately turned a bright blue as energy flowed out from it into Cyborg.

Robin stood up and took several steps backward, wavering slightly, and then collapsed to the floor in exhaustion. He remained conscious, spread eagle and breathing in and out deeply. Twenty minutes passed before Robin finally rolled onto his side and pulled himself up using one of the tables. He picked up one of Cyborg's spare communicators and flipped it open.

"Is anyone there?" he asked weakly. "Any Titan who can hear me, please respond."

There was no answer. Only grey static.

Robin placed the communicator back on the table and slowly lowered himself to the floor. There was not a thing he could do for the moment. Not until Cyborg regained consciousness at least. Though Robin was deeply concerned for the safety of the others, his primary concern was making sure energy continued to be pumped into Cyborg. His systems, once adequately charged, would run self-diagnostics and healing software as needed. Until then, Robin only wanted to sleep, and he happily allowed darkness to embrace him.

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Ok, I hope everyone enjoyed that. Personally, I got quite a kick out of writing the Cyborg/Raven fight scene. Hopefully the next chapter will be up much quicker than this one. I know I say that often, but I'm determined to be done this story before school starts up next month. I might not be, but deadlines are great for motivation.

So, a little preview of next chapter. Robin fondly reminisces about a moment early in his and Raven's new found relationship, Acheron furthers his plans for resurrecting Trigon, and the Titans, though battered and bruised, prepare for an all out confrontation with Acheron.


	9. Preparations

Hello all. I'm really quite sorry for taking this long to get another chapter up. Believe me when I say it wasn't my intention. But here it is. Finally.

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A mighty groan echoed through the cavernous entranceway in the Tower as one of the grand doors was slowly pushed open by Beast Boy's small arms. His strength was too depleted to permit any sort of transformation, leaving him breathing heavily from exhaustion once he had opened the door wide enough to enter. He backed up to where Starfire was leaning against a large rock and carefully he lifted her right arm over his shoulder, holding her hand tightly all the while, and placed his other arm behind her back.

Together they slowly made their way through the open door, but it was only moments before Beast Boy's newfound sense of relief to be returning to the Tower vanished. Large, craggy rubble covered much of the floor directly in front of them and both Titans stared wide eyed, feeling a horrific sense of dread settle into their stomachs.

"Oh God," Beast Boy whispered.

"Raven," Starfire said weakly. "She was here."

Beast Boy cupped one of his hands to his mouth and shouted, "Cyborg?" When no answer came, he shouted again, but there was only silence.

As he and Starfire silently moved past the debris toward the elevator, Beast Boy's eyes were fixed directly overhead at the massive stretch of hallway above that had been completely ripped apart. His skin tingled nervously from the disturbing sight. Once inside the elevator, Beast Boy pushed the button that would take them to the second floor from the top, where the medical bay was found, and he was relieved to find the power still functioned.

"Stay strong, Star," Beast Boy quietly said to her. He repeated the words 'stay strong' inside his head several times while the elevator climbed upward, hoping to calm his nerves. Yet when the doors slid open, a haunting chill settled in the pit of his stomach. Undeterred, Beast Boy pushed away as much of the fear as he could.

"Let's check the med bay first," he said softly. "It's probably our best bet for finding someone."

Starfire lifted her arm off from Beast Boy's shoulders and stood up straight, albeit with a slight amount of difficulty. "I think I am able to support myself once more."

The corner of Beast Boy's mouth moved partially, hinting at a smile. "I'm glad."

"Hello?"

Beast Boy and Starfire turned around suddenly upon hearing the voice. Though it sounded weak, it was very near.

"Cyborg?" Beast Boy called back. "Is that you?"

A short distance down the hallway Robin stumbled out from Cyborg's room, bracing himself against the doorframe. He wore no cape, no mask, his hands were bare, his hair dishevelled, and his body above the waist completely uncovered but for the dull red stained bandages wrapped around his ribs and part of his chest.

"Robin!" Starfire shouted. Finding a reserve of strength that she did not know she had, Starfire hurriedly made it to Robin and determinedly wrapped her arms around him. "Thank Glershvin you are okay!"

Relieved to at last find another Titan, Robin returned the embrace, savouring the wonderful feeling of no longer being alone. When they let go of one another, Beast Boy even happily hugged him.

"You have no idea how happy I am to see both of you alive," Robin said. "When I couldn't raise either of you on the communicator I didn't know what to think."

"Where's Cyborg?" Beast Boy asked. "Is he okay?"

"He's unconscious. I've got him hooked up to the charger in his room and his system is running self-healing software."

"What happened here?"

"I have no idea," Robin replied. "I woke up in the medical bay alone. After searching the Tower I found him on the ground floor buried underneath a pile of bricks."

"It must have been Raven," remarked Starfire.

Robin's eyes widened in abject shock. "Raven? What on earth are you talking about?"

"You don't remember, do you?" Beast Boy asked.

Robin shook his head, still tremendously confused. "No. I can't remember why I was in the medical bay." He rubbed his forehead tenderly, trying to make sense of the scattered bits and pieces of information. "The last thing I remember was leaving the prison after questioning Phobia. I…I had to hurry because Cinderblock had been spotted downtown. Was that early this morning?"

Beast Boy stared at Robin with concern spread across his face. "That was three days ago."

The confusion on Robin's face vanished, overcome by a look of defeat. "What's happened during that time?"

"Raven's mind was attacked by a man named Acheron," Starfire began. "He was a priest of Azarath long ago, and a follower of Trigon, and has somehow overpowered our friend."

"She's completely under his control," Beast Boy said. "We don't even know if she's still alive in there."

"Yesterday morning Raven nearly killed you and Beast Boy," Starfire continued. "When Beast Boy regained consciousness, he and I went in search of her."

"We found her underneath the old library in the chamber where she opened the portal for Trigon." He paused for a moment. "We barely survived."

"That was several hours ago."

Robin was speechless for several long seconds as the terrible truth slowly sunk in, barely able to look at the horrific sight his two friends made. Blood still trickled out from the side of Beast Boy's partially shaved head and bruises decorated his entire body, with much of his chest visible through a wide tear in his clothing, while the material on the right side of his body was barely holding itself together, revealing innumerable lacerations and shredded skin. Starfire's right eye was utterly covered by hideous swelling, dried red splotches and free flowing blood stained her skin, and her left hand, twisted and broken, was dreadful. Finally he said, "What does Acheron want with her?"

"Raven believed he was going to attempt to resurrect Trigon."

"She said it was the only thing he could possibly want," Beast Boy added.

"And you think he came back here? That he used Raven to attack Cyborg?"

Starfire slowly nodded.

"Then Acheron must have been after something," Robin said, "because he obviously didn't come here to kill Cyborg or me. He needed something in the Tower."

"You're thinking Raven's room?" Beast Boy asked.

Robin nodded. "It has to be."

The short distance to Raven's room was covered relatively quickly, and it was only with a slight limp that Robin managed his way down the hallway. Beast Boy immediately thrust open the long, purple curtains covering the window and sunlight poured in, illuminating the normally gloomy room. Raven's sheets were bunched together at the foot of the bed and one of her leotards was lying crumpled on the floor just beside her dresser, but otherwise the room was pristine. Nothing appeared to be out of place, no item looked askew.

"As far as I can tell, everything looks normal," Robin said, slowly moving his eyes over each portion of furniture.

"There's a book missing on the third shelf," Beast Boy remarked.

"How do you know?" questioned Starfire.

"I talked to Raven the morning we fought Cinderblock, just at her doorway. It was a really difficult conversation, and there was one point when I just couldn't look at her. Raven's stare was…it was too uncomfortable. So I looked past her, at her bookcase. I remember seeing that every shelf was completely full."

"You're sure?" asked Robin.

"Positive."

"Raven's books are filled with incantations, spells, formulas," Robin said. "And much of it is dark magic."

"And that means…" Beast Boy began.

"…Acheron has begun the process of reviving Trigon," finished Starfire.

"Then it won't be long," declared Robin. He took a moment to arrange his scattered thoughts. "Our first priority is getting Cyborg back online. Once he's awake he can patch each of us up and maybe give us a slight boost with some medication. Then we have no choice but to go after Raven."

Beast Boy lowered his head, staring at the ground sadly.

Placing his bare hand on Beast Boy's shoulder, Robin said, "Don't lose hope. For Raven's sake, we have to do all we can."

----------

Cyborg's mechanical eye, which had heretofore remained dark, flashed red three times. "Self-healing completed," announced a highly monotone, yet somewhat soothing, female voice. "System damage has been repaired. Reboot in progress."

With a deep groan, Cyborg opened his eye and very slowly sat up. He shook his head back and forth and rubbed his forehead, never even glancing at the three Titans who were now gathered around him.

"Raven!" shouted Cyborg, and he raised his sonic cannon and frantically looked around the room.

"She is gone," Starfire said, lowering herself directly in front of Cyborg's face. "Raven has left."

Cyborg let his fingers cover the barrel of his weapon and finally noticed his friends standing around him. "Robin, good to see you're awake." Looking around, he asked, "How did I get back to my room?"

"I found you on the ground floor buried under stone," replied Robin. "And the power was out."

"Do we know why Raven came back?"

"For a book," answered Beast Boy. "Acheron has one of her books on dark magic."

Cyborg reached up and grabbed the edge of the desk beside him, using it to pull himself to his feet. "So what's the plan?" he asked, taking a deep breath.

"Fix up as many wounds as you can, and then we find Raven," Robin said. "Start with Starfire and Beast Boy. They're worse off than I am."

"Jesus, Star," Cyborg said, noticing her left hand. "I've gotta put this in a splint and bandage it right away. Come on." He promptly marched out of his room and down the hallway, closely followed by Beast Boy and Starfire.

Robin, standing just outside Cyborg's room, said, "You guys go ahead. I have to get my gear together. But I'll meet you in the medical bay shortly." He watched them disappear around a corner and then turned in the opposite direction and walked toward his own room. It was a terrible emotional strain for Robin to hear of everything that had occurred while he was unconscious and the only relief, however faint, which he could find was in thinking about her before this nightmare began.

----------

_A cool breeze rippled his clothing, gently tossing his cape up and down, side to side. Robin inhaled deeply, letting the crisp air settle into his body, and watched the shimmering blue waves crash against the rocky island far below._

"_I thought I might find you up here."_

_Her soothing voice immediately caused his mouth to form into a smile and made his chest tingle with excitement, all before he even turned around. Robin spun on his heels and stared at Raven in the morning sun. Strands of purple hair, shaken by the wind, covered parts of Raven's face, but her wide smile and the joy in her eyes were clearly visible. Raven pushed aside her cloak, which had snugly twisted around her body in the breeze, and pulled Robin into a warm embrace, letting her head comfortably rest on his shoulder._

"_Morning, hun," she said lovingly._

"_Good morning, sweet stuff," Robin replied. "You're up a little earlier than usual."_

_Raven gently pulled back from Robin, keeping her hands on his waist. "I wanted to talk," she said, staring directly at him with her violet eyes._

"_Oh?" he remarked somewhat playfully, cocking his head to one side. "What about?"_

"_Do you remember what you asked me four days ago, right after we beat Phobia?"_

"_I asked you if everything was okay. You're eyes were quivering when I first saw you afterward."_

"_I want to tell you why. But, please don't tell the others."_

"_I promise."_

"_When I was with Phobia on that rooftop, I…I almost…I came so close to…" Raven suddenly pulled away from Robin, backed up several feet, and threw her arms up into the air in frustration, clenching her small fists. "Why can't I just say it?" she asked angrily. "I've always trusted you, Robin, but for the first time ever I really feel like I can tell you everything. I want to confide in you, to bring you completely and fully into my life. But because of some stupid reason I can't bring myself to tell you what happened."_

_Robin gently cupped Raven's chin between his thumb and pointer finger, tilting her head upward slightly so she was looking into his eyes. "Why do you think that is?"_

"_Because I'm ashamed of it," she replied, lowering her eyes._

"_Don't be. Whatever it is, you can tell me."_

_Raven's shoulders rose and fell amid a deep breath. "I almost killed her."_

_Robin tenderly squeezed Raven's shoulder. "We've all come close to that at one point or another. It's nothing to be ashamed of."_

"_No, it is," Raven said, stepping back from Robin again. "You don't understand what I mean. I'm not talking about while we fought. Phobia was lying unconscious on the roof; I had beaten her. And then I picked up her dagger and held it against her throat. I thought about killing her. I _wanted_ to kill her. I felt disgusted with myself for thinking that."_

"_Raven, whatever your thoughts, you didn't act on them. You stopped yourself from doing it. That's what matters."_

"_I should never have even thought it," she snapped. "I'm supposed to be a hero." A tiny sparkle reflected in the corner of her eye from a slowly developing droplet of moisture. "What kind of a hero am I? I actually wanted to slice her throat open. Heroes don't falter. They make the right decisions. Real heroes never think about such horrible things."_

"_Sometimes we do," Robin said, wiping a small tear from Raven's cheek with his thumb. "You're an extraordinary hero, Raven. Don't ever think otherwise. You were strong enough to stop yourself—I was never that strong."_

_Raven stared at Robin strangely, but did not say a word._

"_When I was younger, I came closer to killing than I ever want to admit. It's a terrible memory for me, and there's only one other person who knows about it. I was only fourteen at the time, and it was the first night I was allowed to go out on patrol by myself. The first few hours had been quiet, but then I heard a woman screaming. I moved as fast as I could to get down to the alley she was in, but it wasn't fast enough. She was being beaten by some punk kid, and just before I was close enough to stop him he shot her in the face. I don't remember feeling anything other than rage. I didn't want to arrest him; I wanted to rip him apart with my bare hands. Before I even hit the ground I shattered his Achilles tendon with a birdarang. He was on the ground screaming and clutching his ankle, but I didn't care. I hit him again and again, not even aware of all the blood on my gloves. I know he was pleading for me to stop, but I didn't hear a word of it._

"_The only thing that saved his life was Batman. Turns out he hadn't actually let me go out alone. The whole night he'd been following me, watching closely to see how I'd react in certain situations, to find out if I was truly ready to be a hero. I wasn't."_

_Raven delicately placed her hand on Robin's cheek._

"_I was so sure that what I was doing was right. I thought that ending his life would make Gotham safer. But that's a line we never cross. Killing him wouldn't have brought the woman back to life—it would've turned me into a criminal. Blood for blood is never the solution. That night Batman said something that's stuck with me ever since, more than anything else he ever told me. He said, 'The hardest thing you'll ever have to do is what's right.' That's why I said you're an extraordinary hero, Raven. You discovered it on your own."_

_Without saying a word Raven thrust her arms around Robin, squeezing tightly and letting her tears flow freely._

_----------_

Carefully he slipped a shirt on over his bandaged torso. Looking down at his boots Robin finally became aware of several holes that exposed his feet, so he slid them off and reached into the back of his closet, retrieving a new pair. Before he put them on Robin grabbed a pair of green gloves, a small black mask, a retractable staff and one of his reserve utility belts, tossing each item onto his bed.

The boots went on relatively painlessly, as did the left glove, but Robin gritted his teeth when he pulled the right glove over top a portion of his wrist that had lost a large amount of skin. Carefully he placed his mask over his eyes and then opened each compartment on his belt one by one, ensuring each contained the proper tool or weapon.

Ear splitting shrieking erupted inside Robin's skull and he fell forward hard onto his bed writhing from the pain, sending the utility belt skittering to the far side of the room. A violent spasm spun him around and he collapsed backward to the floor clutching at his head, shaking from the burning agony. Raven flashed in his mind, glowing red with the markings of Scath and screaming horrifically. In an instant she was gone, replaced by a magnificently bright portal that grew outward as the ground broke apart. Fire raced out from the edge, consuming surrounding buildings and engulfing people in flame, while awe inspiring earthquakes shook the city, causing even the tallest structures to break apart and collapse, crushing anyone in the vicinity. A massive, hulking frame rose up from the portal, spouting more flames from his mouth and laughing at the death all around him. Robin saw the lifeless bodies of Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy lying together, twisted and broken, as well as his own only a short distance away.

"Don't let this happen."

The voice was soft and all too familiar—it belonged to Raven.

The terrifying images vanished with a blinding flash of white and Robin snapped upright. "Raven!" he shouted. His breathing was heavy and sweat covered his entire body, but he did not allow himself even a moment to recover. Frantically Robin scrambled over to his utility belt, scooping up several small items that had rolled out and then jumped to his feet, snapping it in place around his waist. Grabbing his staff from atop the bed, Robin tore out of his room, narrowly avoiding the near wall as he sharply turned the first corner. His legs burned, but Robin pushed it from his mind, driving himself to his limits. The Titans had to leave _now_.

----------

Starfire sadly looked down at her left hand, now completely covered in thick, white bandages, her fingers no longer even distinguishable.

"Now don't even think about using that hand for anything," Cyborg said to her. "Any more damage and I don't know how I'll be able to get it to heal naturally. And shooting starbolts from it is completely out of the question."

"I understand," she said quietly.

"And you," Cyborg began, firmly grasping Beast Boy's shoulder, "sit still. Or I won't be able to wrap this properly."

"Sorry," Beast Boy replied. "It just really hurts." He clenched his teeth while Cyborg delicately ran medical bandages around his head.

Cyborg heard loud footsteps even before Robin burst into the medical bay, but was still shocked at his sudden appearance. "Robin, what's—"

"Now," Robin shouted. "We have to leave now."

"Wait. What?" Cyborg asked.

"Drop everything, because we need to go right now."

"How can you know?" inquired Starfire. "What has happened?"

"Raven contacted me mentally. She showed me what's going to happen. Acheron is about to resurrect Trigon. We're out of time."

The others were silent, and Beast Boy hung his head low.

"We have to end this," Robin said firmly. "At any cost."

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To be honest I'm not the biggest fan of this chapter, but it's completely necessary to the story. The entire chapter pretty much sets up the next chapter, which is going to be the greatest I've ever written. I have the entire chapter planned out, and it's going to be very intense. The entire story has been building to this moment. Unfortunately because of its scope I really can't give any indication for when it'll be complete. Just know that I'm going to be feverously working on it, and when it's done the wait is going to be incredibly worth it.

There are going to be 2 more chapters to this story. I'm telling you all this now because I'm not going to have an author introduction or closing to the next chapter. The coming chapter will be so dramatic and touching that writing a little piece like this is going to take away from it. And I won't be doing that. So remember that there are 2 more to come.


	10. At Any Cost

"Cyborg, get that window open. We have to leave immediately." As Cyborg and Beast Boy hurriedly opened the window and rushed out, Robin flipped open the last communicator that remained functional and opened a transmission on all frequencies. "This is Robin calling all Titans and honorary members. We're facing a catastrophic emergency—any and all Titans who can respond within the hour are ordered to proceed directly to Jump City."

Robin snapped the communicator shut and slid it onto his belt while covering the distance to the window. Starfire leapt backward from the windowsill into the open air, firmly grabbing Robin's arm with her right hand as he jumped out barely a second later, and let herself fall downward, gaining speed at a blistering pace before whipping around and propelling herself with her flight abilities, using gravity to slingshot them forward far faster than would otherwise have been possible. She remained exceedingly low to the ocean for several seconds, and Robin felt a steady spray of mist against his body, before pulling higher and closing the space between them and the others.

Beast Boy flapped his massive wings twice, pushing himself to a greater intensity with the magnificent updraft of air created. While a pterodactyl was certainly not his quickest airborne form, it was the only one capable of supporting Cyborg, who swayed awkwardly in Beast Boy's powerful talons from the ever increasing winds.

With a horrific sense of dread and anxiety Starfire stared straight ahead at the skyline of Jump City's downtown core. High above the buildings' summits the light blue sky turned a deep shade of grey, casting a pale shadow over the city, and frightful black clouds took shape that rapidly blocked out the sun entirely, swirling in and around each other and steadily descending downward.

A chill enveloped the four Titans as the air grew colder closer to the city's edge. Far below them large, cascading waves crashed against the concrete docks of the waterfront amid the violent maelstrom, shaking even the largest vessels. A wide section of water whipped upward against a thin sailboat, easily splitting it apart and shearing the rigging, utterly swallowing it into the dark blue expanse. The wave continued to surge forward, tumbling over the docks and enveloping several dock workers, sweeping them across the ground and into the nearest warehouse.

Bright flashes of white erupted among the clouds and deafening crackles of thunder drowned out all other noise. Jagged lightning snaked out from the grey sky, twisting downward in less than a heartbeat and illuminating the air for the briefest of moments. Starfire only had the time to open her mouth in a partial scream before the bolt smashed into the tall office building directly to her right, punching through the layer of glass with an intensity so frightful that it seemed as though the entire structure was exploding. The shockwave ploughed into Starfire, thrusting her backward and twisting her into an awkward spin. She fought to maintain her hold with Robin, but as she flipped roughly for the fourth time their grip with one another snapped, whipping him upward and away from her.

"Robin!" screamed Starfire.

Rotating erratically and uncontrollably Robin struggled to place his hand on the grappling hook at the back of his belt, finding it only after several long seconds. As his fall gained stability he quickly pounded down with his thumb the moment the top of his hand came to point upward at the nearest building. The hook shot upward and a horrified Robin watched the ferocious winds sharply send it veering off course, preventing it from gaining purchase. Its maximum length reached, the line became slack and shook in the air far above Robin as he continued to fall backward.

Clearing her head after the shock and regaining full control over her flight, Starfire snapped downward toward Robin with her one good hand extended as far as she could muster. The grappling line danced back and forth in front of her eyes and she narrowly missed grabbing it twice amid several booming claps of thunder. Finally she managed to grasp it and immediately pulled up from her fall. The line grew taut and tightly twisted around her arm, causing one of the razor sharp hooks at its end to dig into her flesh just above her elbow, and through gritted teeth Starfire kept a strong grip.

Robin was jolted to a sudden stop in midair and his shoulders burned with an intense pain that reverberated down both his arms, yet he kept a firm hold on the device and swung forward only mere metres above the congested street. The line snagged on the very top of a tall lamp post and the handle was viciously torn from Robin's hands. He arched upward with his arms and legs kicking and flailing uncontrollably, and then fell toward the ground once more, landing heavily against the roof of a parked car. The aluminum partially crumpled upon impact, the force of which cracked every window and tossed out tiny fragments of glass.

Starfire ripped the bloody hook from her skin and swooped down to Robin. She touched down gently on top of the car's trunk and offered her hand to him, which he took gratefully. "You are alright?" she asked.

"Never mind about me," he replied briskly. Bits of metal and glass slid off from his chest and thighs when he stood, and he spat blood out from his mouth. "Just get to Raven."

Their hands came together and Starfire pulled Robin off the car and upward, shielding her eyes with her bandaged hand from the onrush of the tempest. Beast Boy fought against the wind to avoid being swept away, flapping both of his wings repeatedly to counter the quickening fury while Starfire hurriedly rose to his elevation.

"Go!" Robin screamed to Beast Boy, frantically waving his free arm.

Beast Boy kicked his wings even harder, pushing forward through the onslaught and drawing ever nearer to its centre. His arms ached and they came closer to giving up on him with each successive flap, heavily dragged down by the friction Cyborg inadvertently caused. Still he pressed on, forcing the pain out of his mind.

Passing between two of the largest buildings in Jump City, Robin could clearly see Raven far below in the centre of a small park that stood in the heart of the downtown core. Her arms were upraised and she stared at the sky, moving her lips in a silent chant. Civilians dotted the perimeter of the park, watching with curiosity and awe at the magnificent storm spiralling overhead.

Robin craned his neck so he could look at Starfire. "Clear civilians!" he screamed. Raven was a heroine, a guardian for the city, and its people would never look upon her as a threat to their safety. He knew they would willingly remain where they stood and face their own destruction, utterly unaware of the horrors that were about to be released on the world.

Starfire nodded in acknowledgement and descended directly downward, letting Robin fall from her hand when he was within several metres of the concrete, and then sharply twisted to the right in preparation for her first attack on Raven.

The ground came quickly and Robin landed softly, tucking into a roll that brought him back to his feet instantly. He found himself only steps away from Captain Marshall and a small group of officers staring at Raven dumbfounded, trying unsuccessfully to gauge what it was that she was currently doing. Blue and red flooded the area from the lights on the three police cars bunched together.

Captain Marshall turned suddenly at Robin's appearance. "Robin, what's—"

"Get everyone out of here now!"

"What are you—"

"Now!" Robin shouted. "Someone's taken control of Raven. It's not her!"

"Oh Christ," Marshall muttered, his eyes widening as he came to comprehend the severity of the situation he found himself in. He grabbed the collar of the nearest officer and pushed him backward, spurring him to action. "You heard him! Get this area clear!" Marshall reached into the breast pocket of his brown suit jacket, retrieving his handgun. For a moment he watched the four men charge off toward civilians and then looked back at Robin. "What do you need?"

"Just get the area evacuated!"

"What?" Marshall shouted over the pounding sound of thunder and the wind.

"Evacuate!" he screamed again. "We'll deal with Raven!"

A dark blur flashed in Robin's peripheral vision and instinct propelled him to action even before a thought had registered. _"Down!"_ he screamed, grabbing Marshall's jacket and forcefully driving him face first into the concrete. The shockwave from the impact rushed over Robin's body at the same moment he heard the horrifically loud crash he expected, praying that the police cruisers would shield them from the car that had just plummeted from the sky.

Sounds of grinding and rending metal filled the air barely two metres from Robin and shards of twisted metal and glass fell upon their backs. The car hurled over one of the cruisers, shearing the roof and sirens off completely, which ripped off one of its side doors and projected the entire vehicle into an erratic spin that thrust it beyond Robin and Marshall and caused it to land on its front bumper. The frame immediately crumpled inward and the windshield shattered apart, while the momentum tossed the back upward into one last flip that brought the car to a screeching stop on its roof.

The captain groggily raised his head and shook it, shocked by what had just happened and unable to even speak. His trembling hand waved in front of his face for a second and then slowly brushed through dishevelled hair, flicking out sparks of glass.

Robin tugged on the shoulders of his suit, quickly and awkwardly pulling him to his feet. "You have to get this entire area clear! Go!"

Marshall nodded with a firm resolve and scrambled away from Robin, shouting indiscernible words over the frenzy of the storm. Panic had already slowly crept into the minds of the people surrounding the park, most of whom were suddenly screaming and racing away from the intensifying whirlwind.

Foliage was ripped from the branches of the trees and bushes in the park and the smaller vegetation snapped apart. The larger trees slowly shook amid the ferocious winds, crunching and cracking loudly. Fractures appeared in the bark all along the trees' trucks, widening and twisting with the increasingly violent vibrations, until finally each was torn out from the ground in succession.

In the centre of the park Raven raised her right hand high into the air, clenched it into a tightly closed fist and then slammed it into the ground at her feet. Crackles of black rippled around her for a moment and then an incredible black shell burst outward, stretching dozens of feet away from her and into the air. It tore across the earth, ripping apart the trees nearest her and pulverizing anything in its path.

----------

Frantically little Josh hurried away from the terrifying storm that was descending from the sky, squeezing his older sister's hand as tight as he could. Her long brown ponytail flapped wildly, brushing against his face every few seconds, and she partially turned to look down at him as she continued to run. "Josh, I need you to run faster!" she shouted, barely able to even hear her own voice.

"Vicky, I can't!" he pleaded in a high pitched voice, tears welling up in his eyes.

"You've got to try!"

The wind howled in Vicky's ears and she desperately sought to get away from the carnage surrounding them. While tugging on her younger brother's hand she heard an ear splitting squealing that rattled inside her head. Twisting her head far to the left she saw a lamp post snap at the base and come soaring through the air directly toward her, breaking apart into several vicious fragments that spun away from each other.

Vicky screamed and wrapped her arms around Josh's chest, diving behind a parked minivan and using her own body to shield her brother. One segment punctured directly through the vehicle, easily splitting and ripping the metal mere feet from her head. Josh was sobbing and shaking beneath her but she held him close, not allowing him to look up. Almost immediately Vicky wished she had kept her own head down, becoming witness to a sight no young girl should ever see.

Even as the first piece of metal tore into the frame of the van another massive chunk slammed into a man running along the sidewalk, driving him fiercely into the stone wall of a building and utterly crushing most of his body. Directly behind him a woman stopped in her tracks horrified, unable to look away from the dead body of the man. Within barely a second a smaller shard cleaved through the flesh of her back and erupted out from her stomach in a bloody mess, and she collapsed lifeless without the slightest sound.

Vicky sharply turned her head to the left and retched, letting the vomit painfully rush out and slap against the sidewalk. Her breath was raspy and she needed several long seconds to steady herself, not even aware she was crying. Carefully she sat upright and lifted her brother, delicately keeping her hand on the right side of his face to prevent him from looking over at the crumpled bodies.

"Joshie," she said loudly, trying not to let her voice waver, knowing he would only become more scared if he saw she was. "We need to run. Whatever happens, do _not_ look to your right."

She pulled Josh to his feet and forced his head to look left as gently as she could manage, keeping him close to her while they ran. The sounds of screaming, the pounding of thunder, the crumbling of concrete and the crashing of metal around them were awful, and Vicky desperately wished she could tune all of it out.

Despite the maelstrom she felt a powerful rumble beneath her that shuddered up her legs, and then without warning a gigantic arm scooped her up from the ground. She found herself screaming from the absolute shock of it, only partially calmed knowing that Josh remained beside her, both of them pressed against thick green fur. When the ground rushed up again, the arms delicately released them amid a mighty growl. Vicky turned and found herself staring at an eight foot tall gorilla, positively shaking from the suddenness and terror that had engulfed her, but it was seeing a gargantuan tree lying twisted where she stood only a moment before that nearly pushed her over the edge.

The creature shrunk into a drastically smaller person only about the same height as Vicky, and Josh stared up at him in awe, finally seeing the Titan for who he was.

In a voice that barely penetrated the storm he shouted, "Get out of here!" Beast Boy leapt into the air and in a flash he morphed into an eagle that flew upward and disappeared in the blackness of the sky.

Vicky firmly grabbed Josh's hand once more and pulled him down the nearest road, maintaining her composure for the sake of her brother.

----------

On the far side of the park, a teenage girl with curly red hair grabbed her best friend's wrist and yanked backward. "We've got to get out of here, Nikki!"

Nikki partially turned to run but stumbled at the edge of the curb when an intense gust of wind slammed into her back. She fell sideways awkwardly as she lost her footing, tugging her friend off her feet and to the pavement. Both girls sprawled roughly against the road and painfully ripped off chunks of exposed flesh on their arms and faces.

Pushing black hair out of her face with a bloodied hand, Nikki gently touched her friend's shoulder. "Hollie, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," she replied with a wince. As Hollie turned and revealed her entire face, Nikki grimaced to see she was missing the first few layers of skin on her right cheek and chin. There were tears in Hollie's eyes, but she fought them back and determinedly grabbed Nikki's hand and started to stand.

"_Look out!"_ Nikki screamed, wrapping her arms around Hollie. They held each other tightly and stared straight ahead silently in abject terror at a bright red station wagon that fell from the sky toward them.

A furious shout echoed around them and the girls watched in amazement as a hulking man leapt over them and drove his shoulder into the side of the airborne car. The initial crash was deafeningly loud and instantly the middle buckled inward with such force that the front and back curled around like a horseshoe, utterly stopping the car in midair. It dropped to the ground as a gnarled wreck and the man stood up straight without any sign of discomfort.

"It's Cyborg," Hollie whispered, and though Nikki could not hear her over the howling winds, she too recognized the Titan.

The fingers on his right hand twisted up to his wrist and the palm spread out into a large opening that glowed bright blue, and he half turned his head to look at them. "You need to get as far away from here as you can!" he shouted.

Both girls scrambled to their feet without saying another word and raced down the street together, tightly holding hands in an attempt to comfort each other. Hollie continued to rotate her head back and forth while they ran, staring at the appalling and grisly scene. Clouds black as night swirled rapidly in a circular motion, so near to the ground that the top several floors of the tallest buildings were hidden entirely. Six brilliant white lightning bolts flashed in quick succession in a wide arc around them, followed by booming thunder so overpowering that Nikki looked up with fear, expecting the sky itself to come crashing down.

Cold rain poured out from the clouds, engulfing the entire downtown core in a heavy sheet of water that greatly obstructed vision. Vicious winds swept the precipitation in all directions truculently, until the deluge seemed to even surge forth sideways.

Emerald flashes sparkled against the dark backdrop of the sky, hurtling downward from Starfire's one outstretched hand. The orbs spun wildly toward the lone figure in the park, casting a pale green glow directly beneath the Tamaranean, and burst apart on the ground with an outpouring of charred dirt and vegetation. Raven deftly whipped her hands around; surrounded by telekinetic energy, Starfire's blasts merely splashed off. The black shrunk together around Raven's slender hands and then streaks erupted upward from its centre at a frightening velocity. Starfire jerked downward as the first razor line shot past, and then spun to her left while arching backward to avoid the next two successive deadly darts.

An azure spiral from Cyborg's sonic cannon coursed toward Raven, who spun to the right in an adroit manner with her forearm already raised. Incandescent blue cascaded across the surface of a rounded shield directly in front of the violet haired Azarathian. Cyborg kept up a continual stream, taking one step forward while tightly gripping the cannon barrel with his left hand, spewing an even thicker discharge.

Nearly blinded by the magnificent blue halo that circled the edge of her defence, Raven thrust her arms straight ahead, launching the shield forward. Its bottom extended into a knifelike point that sliced a thin trench through the already rain soaked ground, yet even despite the friction this created it did not have the slightest perceivable affect on its speed, and Cyborg only barely managed to roll out of its path. The black wall screamed past and slammed into the front window of a bank on the other side of the street, furiously tearing through the lobby. Frightened civilians still in the vicinity threw up their hands to shield themselves from tiny bits of glass and other fragments that showered outward with the bank's destruction.

Snatching a birdarang in each hand, Robin leapt onto the hood of the police cruiser directly in front of him, springing upward and over. He snapped his right arm in an outside loop and then followed suit with his left, loosing both projectiles toward Raven. They arched off course so instantaneously and with such dramatic precision that Robin knew immediately the wind was not the source. As they sped back directly at him, Robin twirled his staff to its full extent and whipped its left end forward, shattering one of the birdarangs that he could now see was encased in black energy.

The second came in too close behind to be deflected away and Robin's right side was utterly vulnerable from blocking the first, leaving his reflexes as the only escape. Though he reacted swiftly, the effort was a mere fraction away from being a complete success, and the sharp edge of the birdarang's wing cleanly sliced through his right bicep.

Robin fell to one knee and let the staff drop from his left hand, clutching tightly at the split skin. It was only a fleeting respite, for he firmly gripped the staff again and charged forward across the soft and soggy grass of the park. Barely a dozen feet away the last remaining tree burst apart ferociously, scattering twisted splinters of wood outward and blowing chunks of ground into the air. The heavy wind immediately grabbed hold of the debris and sucked it all skyward, and tiny splotches of dirt smacked against Robin's chest while he was at full speed.

He leapt at Raven brandishing his metal staff, but she artfully spun to the side, pressing her palm hard against the staff as Robin tore past, which partially turned him away from her. Robin whipped his upper body around the moment he landed, only barely fast enough to deflect her swift inward kick with his staff. Her right leg swung around quicker than Robin had anticipated and with such ferocity that he was knocked off balance when she struck his staff. He rapidly brought his back peddling under control but remained in an awkward stance, unable to prevent a lunging Raven from slamming both fists into his chest.

The strike pushed him off his feet and Robin landed on his back with a grunt. Using his momentum he sprung his knees as high as he could muster, forcing all his weight upward to his shoulders and flipping himself over and back to his feet in one fluid motion. He remained in a crouched position and gritted his teeth in pain as his brain and nervous system registered Raven's impact on his wounded chest. Robin could feel his tattered flesh beginning to bleed beneath the bandaging.

Only a short distance away Raven smiled. "Chest pains? Poor fellow. I know how excruciating they can be!" she shouted, unleashing a blast of dark energy that hammered against Robin's torso and thrust him into the air. He smacked into the ground hard and completed two full rotations, taking a painful blow to the side of his head, and the staff spun wildly out of his hands.

A shrill cry grabbed hold of Raven's attention and she turned around to see a magnificent eagle pierce through the tempest, hurtling toward the ground. Only feet from the surface the bird burst apart; its beak turned to flesh and razor teeth lined the gums, its wings came inward to form long arms that extended into three menacing claws, feathers vanished amid thick, leathery skin, a long tail curled out as a continuation of its back, its legs were replaced with perfectly formed muscles, and its talons were enlarged dramatically, with the addition of one solid claw that curved upward from the side of each foot.

The pale green velociraptor snapped its powerful jaws once and sprung forward at full tilt, bent forward with its tail held straight in line with its back perfectly. Beast Boy's incredible hind legs propelled him off the ground and he brought his two deadly claws to bear at the forefront of his attack, shrieking as the gap between him and his target shrank. Raven moved toward the carnivore unflinchingly and let herself fall, sliding feet first across the wet grass and taking her under Beast Boy.

She leapt back to her feet at the same moment the velociraptor landed on the ground, which caved in several inches beneath the creature's weight. Beast Boy skidded amid the gooey mud and pouring rain, but successfully scrambled out of the quagmire his own bulk had created and pounced once more at Raven, thick muck dripping from his claws.

Raven twisted her waist to the side, adjusting her upper body just barely enough to avoid the dinosaur that came screeching to a halt mere inches from her, its mouth gleaming with knifelike teeth. Hot saliva splashed on Raven's face when Beast Boy's jaws crashed shut and she could feel the warmth of his breath. Bracing her back leg Raven slammed both her hands against the side of Beast Boy's chest in a magnificent flash of black that tossed him backward tumultuously. He landed harshly on his side, shredding the soft ground and leaving a long scar across the surface. The velociraptor kicked its legs in a frenzy and scratched at the mud until it gained the purchase necessary to return to its feet.

Starbolts reigned down at Raven and blasts from Cyborg's sonic cannon came in from the side in a melange of bright energy. Raven's violet hair was tossed about wildly as she thrust her right arm outward to the side and her left arm above her head, blocking the assaults with dark circular shields. Amid the frantic chaos Raven's acute senses picked up on a deep snarl and she kicked her right leg backward, which burst with black fire that rammed into a charging Beast Boy and sent him careening violently off a wrecked car that lay smouldering at the very edge of the park. He landed in his human form, having endured such a terrible jolt of pain that he could no longer maintain his transformation.

Letting the shields vanish, Raven cart wheeled away from the explosive charges and stood perfectly still, staring at Starfire with a malevolent smile. She and Cyborg refrained from firing and braced themselves in order that their attention could be fixed squarely on the attack they knew was coming. A thin line of black energy curled out from each of Raven's clenched fists, snaking and weaving across the ground until both stretched nearly twenty feet. She snapped her arms upward and the energy cracked to life loudly, surging off the ground and slicing through the air. The whips twisted and arched swiftly, mimicking Raven's graceful movements in a deadly dance.

Cyborg fell to the ground roughly in avoidance of one that slashed horizontally at his midsection, and then scrambled to dive as the other swiped downward at him from directly above. Back on his feet, he leaped on top of an overturned car and used it to springboard himself even higher, just before the frightening instruments ripped back toward him, passing directly below.

Raven whirled around with her arms spread wide and Starfire was taken aback by the sheer speed of her whips, reaching her only a fraction slower than her own reflexes proved to be, yet even they were not adequate to take her completely out of harm's way. The very tip of the first energy weapon scratched across the flesh of Starfire's right thigh, leaving a long red slice, but she managed to push herself backward far enough to avoid the second entirely.

The Azarathian continued her rotation, once again focusing her attention on the mechanical target. The whips arched around either side of the heavily damaged car Cyborg sheltered behind, and in his haste to tumble away from the one that appeared to his left he failed to notice the other. He felt crushing pressure down his entire right leg as black energy wrapped itself over his ankle and spiralled up to the knee. His limb shot upward with such ferocity that sparks exploded from the joint holding it to his torso and his body flipped awkwardly, smashing his face into the solid concrete.

Cyborg was yanked away from the ground instantly, climbing ever higher while his arms convulsed uncontrollably and he gagged at the onrush of rain into his mouth, which he was unable keep closed. Extreme pressure rushed furiously against his chest and his stomach felt painfully queasy, and the entire landscape, blurred as it already was in the storming water, became almost unrecognizable. The energy wrapped around his lower leg dissipated, but it had already heaved Cyborg up and over the park and he spun turbulently in the air, incapable of taking a breath in the torrent and through a mouth partially filled with rain.

The elements combined to make vision utterly impossible and the continuous spinning left him disoriented. A shockwave erupted the moment Cyborg's heavy frame struck the stone wall of a nearby building, momentarily forcing the rain outward in all directions from the mighty release of pressure. Cracks speckled the infrastructure and further sparks sprung out from fractures and scratches on his metal plating. Cyborg whacked his hands against the building as he tumbled downward, desperately trying to slow his descent but achieving nothing other than flicking off bits of stone.

Striking the ground roughly, Cyborg bounced and landed a second time, grunting when several larger chunks of brick following closely behind hammered into his back. He pushed himself up to his knees and shook his head while grimacing, trying to clear his vision. The damage to his system had been significant, for the mechanical eye was completely offline, with the word ERROR flashing in red letters at the bottom corner. His human eye was fairing little better in the fierce wind and blowing rain.

Raven, almost delicately, raised her right arm over her head. Prodigious cracks formed several metres directly in front of her, splitting the ground apart in massive segments. With a rumbling that turned from gentle to vigorous, the segments rose up from the ground and were launched through the air when Raven dropped her arm. Dismissing Cyborg as unable to avoid such an assault, she disdainfully turned away immediately and soared upward into the sky, aiming with deadly accuracy for what was currently the most pressing threat.

Green blasts filtered down at her approach in a chaotic and haphazard manner, and Raven deftly manoeuvred between each, twirling, rising and sinking in perfect coordination. With Raven's arrival imminent, Starfire squeezed her right hand into a fist and lunged downward to meet her, already beginning to swing. Raven dipped at the last moment, leaving Starfire's hand to pass harmlessly above her head, and then surged up with her own fist, driving it viciously into the alien's chin. The force of it pushed her head back and momentarily prevented Starfire from seeing her attacker, who whipped her foot against the inside of Starfire's leg and then arched back slightly and hammered the same foot into her uncovered stomach.

Starfire plunged forward and swung twice with her right hand, missing a whirling Raven both times. The counterattack came swiftly and Starfire swooped back in avoidance of her right fist, and then succeeded in tightly grasping Raven's left wrist when it too came at her. For a brief moment the superior strength of the Tamaranean held sway over the Azarathian, but before she could make use of the advantage Raven smashed her forehead into Starfire's face. With her arm free, Raven backhanded Starfire across her cheek.

Cyborg remained on his knees, and squinted with his human eye through the billowing rain, only fainting making out immense and contorted shapes against the dark backdrop. The shapes took on a very clear appearance within a heartbeat, along with the gravity of the situation, and Cyborg scrambled to get to his feet. An ear splittingly high pitched whistling erupted before his body was capable of reacting further and five bright streaks of yellow flashed across his vision from the right, slamming into the chunks of earth and exploding magnificently in the darkness.

A burst of air whooshed over him and tiny clumps of dirt splattered onto his frame, and Cyborg blinked rapidly to clear the pinpricks of light from his eye. He turned around in amazement and scanned the vicinity for the source of the sudden volley that had taken him out of harm's way. At the corner of the nearest intersection, his short orange hair kicking up and down wildly in the wind, his rain drenched scarlet shirt clinging tightly to his chest, a mass of yellow protruding from behind his shoulders, and a canary coloured bow held firmly in his left hand, stood Speedy.

----------

Her vision foggy from the terrible swelling that had enveloped the right side of her face from the first confrontation with Raven beneath Jump City's old library, Starfire found that she was once more fighting for her life. Raven's strikes were too quick, too brutally accurate, for her to successfully avoid. Already weakened and lacking the use of one arm and one eye, Starfire was an easy target, one which Raven exploited to its full. Knuckles pounded into her stomach, her jawbone, her ribcage, her collarbone. The sickening taste of blood trickled down into her mouth from her nostrils, and with a mighty bellow Starfire managed to thrust her right arm directly against Raven's stomach and let fly with a starbolt. Raven's dark blue clothing flashed green momentarily and then her entire body was driven backward.

She countered the momentum and pressure without much effort, and once still stared in absolute shock at herself. A large craggily section of her leotard was utterly burned away and revealed much of the pale skin beneath was now flushed red. The frigid rain sharply stung her bare wound, painfully washing over the sensitive area. Raven glared menacingly at Starfire, and her lip curled upward in barely contained fury.

Speedy cupped his hand under Cyborg's arm and helped lift him up from the ground. "What the hell is happening?" he shouted. "Why is Raven attacking you?"

"It's not Raven! She's being controlled!"

"What?" shouted Speedy, straining to hear over the storm.

"Not Raven!" Cyborg screamed. "She's possessed!"

"By who?"

"Azarathian priest!"

Speedy spat out water that was rapidly filling his mouth when he talked. "Why?"

"Resurrect Trigon!"

Even with a mask shielding part of his face, Cyborg could clearly see Speedy's eyes widen in fear. He looked down at the ground and his lips moved slowly, but the words he said were inaudible. "Is that possible?" he hollered, looking back up at Cyborg.

"I think we're seeing it now!"

Speedy stared up skyward to see Starfire valiantly fighting hand to hand against Raven. A titanic lightning bolt coursed outward from the clouds, filling the entire horizon and illuminating the two combatants in eerie white outlines. "Robin and—" a deafening eruption of thunder silenced his shouts, forcing Speedy to pause for a moment. "Robin and Beast Boy!"

Cyborg shook his head. "I don't know! Both got hit!"

Speedy's voice was hoarse from screaming at his very peak, and it cracked as he continued. "Do we have a plan?"

"Bring Raven down!"

Speedy stared uncomprehendingly, trying desperately to make sense of the words he had just heard.

"Either that or we all die!"

Raven surged forward, her eyes emanating radiant white in the darkness, small black tentacles coursing over both her closed fists, and screaming in unbridled indignation. Starfire howled and met the charge, winding her arm backward and unleashing what remained of her entire strength a fraction of a second before the two were to crash into one another. The features on Raven's body disappeared suddenly, leaving merely a black outline, and then even that vanished the moment before Starfire's fist rushed into the space she had just occupied.

Dark energy streaked together into one mass that took on Raven's form instantly, and she reappeared directly behind Starfire after having phased through her body. Raven swiftly raised her leg and savagely kicked Starfire's spine, forcing her torso forward and painfully bringing her head and legs backward. Even as Starfire groaned loudly, Raven grabbed a large clump of shimmering red hair and viciously yanked in downward, thrusting her head even further back. Tiny speckles of blood dotted Starfire's scalp as hair and bits of flesh were ripped free.

She swung wildly with her arms in a vain attempt to connect with her attacker, but Raven drove her knee into Starfire's back, arching her body in an excruciating manner. Starfire was gasping for breath, yet her face, now angled skyward, was overcome with an inordinate amount of rain, and she choked violently.

Finally she found herself released, but before Starfire could properly recover her position Raven spun around and tightly grasped her left forearm. Heinously smiling, Raven wound up with her right fist and prepared to unleash untold suffering upon the poor crippled alien. Starfire tried to pull away, but was incapable of summoning enough strength in her extraordinarily weakened state. Raven brutally punched Starfire's broken and mangled hand, tearing through the water soaked medical bandages and cracking several bones with a sickening crunch. Horrendous pain shot up her nervous system, engulfing her entire arm and shoulder, and she shrieked hideously.

Starfire's scream horrified Speedy, and immediately he retrieved an arrow from his quiver and fluidly placed it into his bow, pulling the string to its greatest tension while simultaneously aiming through the swirling storm. He let the string fall from his fingertips and the arrow burst upward, cutting through the winds and rain toward Raven's back with deadly precision.

Raven shoved Starfire's arm away harshly and encased the entire limb in black from a short distance. She whipped her own arm across her midsection, pulling the dark energy and spinning Starfire around her and directly into the path of the incoming arrow. The cylindrical red tip exploded hard against Starfire's back, burning her flesh and very nearly knocking her unconscious from the sheer force of it.

The Azarathian streaked forward and pummelled Starfire's face with both her fists, repeatedly smashing her knuckles into the defenceless girl. Starfire remained in the air for only a moment longer and then lurched forward, unable to maintain her flight. She tumbled downward in a tumultuous spin and struck the ground unmoving.

"No," Speedy whispered, devastated to see what had become of his shot.

"_Star!"_ Cyborg screamed vehemently. The plating on his broad shoulders slid outward, revealing numerous circular openings out of which blue and grey missiles erupted with flashes of orange. Half a dozen projectiles rocketed upward, leaving thin trails of puffy smoke that vanished in the pouring rain and driving wind.

Raven tossed her wet, heavy cloak back over her shoulder and swiftly flew directly into the salvo, twisting up and over the first two. She let herself drop as the third whizzed past and immediately arched her back and upraised her left arm, letting the fourth pass between her ribcage and bicep, momentarily bringing intense heat to that area. Raven whirled her body sideways, greatly reducing her profile, and the final two missiles passed by mere inches from her on either side.

The projectiles came to a sudden stop in the air several feet beyond Raven, encased in dark energy. She drove her arms forward and the weapons spun one hundred and eighty degrees and tore past her, hurtling toward the pair of Titans on the ground. The speed of the missiles was augmented by Raven's dark magic, pushing them beyond the velocity Cyborg thought possible. Speedy's nerves remained calm, allowing him to pluck three arrows from his quiver in perfect sequence, firing each one individually. The trio left his bow with such precision and quickness as to almost be one indistinguishable yellow line.

Heavily damaged and now lacking an effective targeting system, Cyborg desperately loosed a barrage of blue from his sonic cannon, wildly moving his arm in what he believed to be the general vicinity. The missile screamed past his meagre defence and exploded violently against his chest, sending an intense wave of pressure outward from its epicentre that utterly swarmed over his entire body, and savagely kicking him backward.

The first of Speedy's arrows struck the other incoming missile head on, erupting in a mighty explosion that flashed with fiery orange and plumes of black smoke, while the two successive arrows plunged straight through the debris field without slowing. Raven snapped her right hand upward and a tremendously thin vertical line of black rushed out from her fingertips, slicing both arrows cleanly in half and eliminating the momentum, leaving each to be picked up by the wind and blown in frantic circles harmlessly toward the sky.

Raven stretched her left hand upward with her fingers spread wide, and directly above her, in the very centre of the swirling tempest, the thick black clouds parted, forming a small opening around which the storm continued to intensify. Slender lightning, jagged and as black as the clouds that spawned it, twisted out from the hole and smashed into the ground at the very moment Speedy dived to the side. The force and heat of the impact rushed against his back, spinning him wildly and spilling most of the arrows from his quiver. He rolled awkwardly on his shoulder and bit his lip to quell the pain, but knew even before he found his footing that he had successfully avoided the actual bolt of burning electricity. Speedy pushed himself up and over into a crouched position, still tightly clutching his bow, and forced himself to ignore the immense discomfort that crawled over his singed flesh.

A faint smile of admiration formed on Raven's face, but it vanished the moment she tightened her hand into a fist. A towering bolt of lightning snaked down from the sky, splitting into three separate strands as it neared the surface. Speedy only had enough time to bend his knees in anticipation of leaping forward before the first devastating arm crashed directly in front of him. Searing pain surged over his entire body and his face and throat felt as if they were ignited in flame, and he buried them in hands that no longer held his bow as he screamed coarsely.

An enormous force pounded into his left side when the second and third bolts struck mere inches from his body a heartbeat later, thrusting him around in a vicious circle onto his stomach and whacking his forehead against the cement. With his face already burning, Speedy was unaware of the warm blood that now crept over his skin. His hand slid forward across the ground, wavering uncontrollably, and he brought his knee slightly forward in a weak attempt to pull himself to his feet. It was several agonizing seconds longer before his eyes gave up on him and the world turned to darkness.

----------

Robin hacked and wheezed as he returned to consciousness, overcome by the downpour of water against his face. Tears streamed freely from his eyes amidst the blazing winds, and splitting pain erupted in his head when he steadily raised it. Far across the park he could see Raven's backside, and slowly she tilted her head to the sky and upraised her arms. Bright patterns of red coursed over her pale skin and she smoothly lifted off the ground, rising upward.

Robin's eyes widened in horror and he frenetically scrambled onto his side and leapt to his feet, snatching up his staff with one hand and sprinting forward despite his body's efforts to abandon him and collapse. More distance built between Raven and the surface, and still Robin pushed himself to a greater speed. Once he was within several metres of her Robin lunged forward, driving his shoulder into the small of her back and wrapping his arms tightly around her body.

The pair fell from the air turbulently, tangled among each other, and Raven struck the ground face first and grunted as Robin's weight crushed down upon her. The momentum pushed them upward again and Raven deftly jabbed at a pressure point on Robin's wrist with her index and middle fingers, forcing that hand to release the other. A second impact with the ground shook both of them, spinning Raven up and over Robin. Using her advantage, she fiercely lambasted Robin's gut with the bottom of her feet, sending him crashing to the ground.

She slid to a stop on the balls of her feet and stood up perfectly straight, unwavering in even the slightest. "Still you continue this struggle."

"Raven!" Robin shouted. "I know you're still in there!"

"Can you not see that this is over? Your companions are strewn about. Their energies are spent. And I am but moments away from resurrecting my glorious master and bringing an end to this pathetic dimension. Despite your efforts the portal will fulfill her role, and her body will be the first of billions to fall. The wretched former inhabitants of Azarath can save you no longer. This time, there will be no miracle."

"It's not over yet, Acheron. As long as just one of us can stand, we'll continue to fight."

"Your bravery is an admirable quality. But it is vastly overshadowed by your utter idiocy. You are tattered, bloodied and weak, incapable of mounting an effective resistance."

"For Raven, there's nothing I wouldn't do."

"Is that what compels you? This feeble girl? Your situation is the apex of hopelessness. Even a fool would be all too well aware that she is doomed. And yet still you would willingly lay down your own life to defend hers?"

"I would."

"You constrict and shackle yourself with love. The feelings you hold for her make you weak."

"You're wrong. It makes me strong. Stronger than I would ever be otherwise. My love for Raven is why I'm still standing."

"And that is why you continue to cling to the false hope that she will somehow respond and break free of my hold over her. By all perceptible standards she is already dead. She remains indefinably alive merely until she has served her role." With a flash of black a twisted dagger appeared in each of her hands, the steel blades curling upward no less maniacally than the corner of Raven's lips. "And now, after the excruciatingly long days and years I have patiently waited, you remain the lone obstacle standing between me and my master's rebirth."

Robin brandished his staff, gripping it tightly with drenched gloves. Brilliant bolts of lightning poured out from the furious clouds in all directions, and deafening claps of thunder sounded off in succession, violently shaking the landscape. Crimson blood continued to flow across Robin's face, splashing and mixing with the unyielding rain.

Raven slid her right foot forward and dark energy snaked out from her toes, cutting a square out from the ground. The block of earth hovered for a moment and then surged toward Robin, who deftly cart wheeled to his right and returned to his feet to see Raven already approaching fast, her twin daggers frightening close to his flesh. He brought his staff up quickly and countered the daggers with a loud _clink_ of metal crashing into metal, and spun around low to the ground, but Raven leapt over the staff before it could connect with her shin.

Her left foot screamed toward Robin's head while still airborne, and he just barely slammed his staff upward into the bottom of her boot. Flexing his arm muscles and bracing his legs, Robin thrust against Raven's foot, forcing her backward in an awkward twist. He lunged forward and swiped horizontally, narrowly missing her as she arched still further backward in the air, and then smashed downward at the ground a mere heartbeat after she landed, connecting only with soggy dirt. Raven propelled herself through her sideways roll and sprung to her feet, slashing across at Robin's chest.

He leaned away from the blade, watching it pass him by a hairsbreadth, and twirled his staff in an outward loop to block her following attacks. The move forced Raven's daggers away from him and spun her body sideways, bringing their shoulders together. Robin pressed his left shin against Raven's right calf and swept upward, kicking her leg into the air and pushing her dangerously off balance. As her body fell backward Robin slammed his elbow into her ribcage, brutally knocking her to the ground.

Raven spun on her back and kicked the inside of Robin's kneecap, painfully buckling the joint, and then with her palms pressed squarely on the ground pushed upward with her arms, driving the lower half of her body straight up and ramming the soles of her boots into the underside of Robin's chin. His jaw snapped shut with a horrific crunching noise and he could feel the fragmented remains from the two teeth that had instantly shattered bouncing over his tongue and gums. He spat warm blood laced with tiny white shards from his mouth. Robin's knee burned, shooting daggers of searing pain through his thigh and lower stomach, and he stumbled, trying to shift the bulk of his weight to the other leg.

Robin came forward and jabbed his staff at Raven's stomach, which she effortlessly deflected with a smooth swipe of her right dagger. She stepped backward and snapped her left hand upward, catching Robin's second swing with her dagger and pushing his staff well above her shoulders. Raven stabbed inward to Robin's ribcage, narrowly being forced off stride by his rapid recovery, and leaving the left side of her body exposed. He simultaneously brought his left hand back toward himself while extending his right hand outward, knocking the lower portion of his staff into her ribs. As Raven lurched momentarily Robin thrust his foot into her stomach, striking the bare skin burned by Starfire.

He twisted on the soles of his feet and spun around with his left leg raised, passing only through empty air as Raven lunged beneath the kick and slashed the bottom of his calf with her upraised right dagger. She pounded her foot into Robin's right ankle, severing the only part of his body keeping him upright and sending him crashing to the ground. Raven slammed her foot downward and Robin fiercely kicked upward from his back, blocking her attack with the sole of his boot.

Robin released a hand from his staff and flipped open one of the only compartments on his belt that he knew contained weaponry, grasping one small silver ball. He whipped his hand outward, loosing the ball directly toward Raven, and instantly closed his eyes. The circle exploded directly between them in an outpouring of viciously bright light and Raven back-pedalled, shielding her eyes and gasping. Robin sprung to his feet in the momentary respite gained from the strike and unleashed a wild swing at Raven, catching her shoulder and pushing her back another step.

Firmly planting her feet, Raven hammered her right dagger forward, connecting perfectly with Robin's second attack and sending out a burst of sparks from the intense metallic friction. She stabbed with one blade and swiped vertically with the other, encountering Robin's weapon with each move. Raven pulled the daggers back to her shoulders and drove them forward, and frazzled vibrations coursed through the veins in her arms when they were blocked and held in position by Robin's horizontally placed staff.

"Fight his control, Raven!" he screamed.

Robin's wrists wavered as Raven pressed down against his staff with her daggers, smiling malevolently beyond the purple hair that sprayed across her face in the wind. Robin could feel the hot breath escaping from Raven's partially opened mouth, so close were their faces to one another. Her lips slowly spread farther apart, so gradually Robin was not even aware of it, and then her jawbone shot down and dozens of tiny black streaks of dark energy poured out, rushing to the flesh surrounding Robin's eyes and eating away at his mask. Waves of pain danced over his face and Robin's head arched backward.

Cascading black swirled upward from the palms of Raven's hands and overtook her daggers, billowing over the blades like raging fire, and she sliced through the metal staff that Robin held, easily shattering it into three uneven segments. She tossed the daggers into the wet earth and boldly strode forward, slamming her fists into Robin's chest and stomach repeatedly, feeling his soft and bloodied skin breaking against the onslaught of her knuckles.

Robin lurched and hacked furiously with each pounding he took, unable to see more than a blur in front of him through his partially blinded eyes. He weakly threw up his arm in a feeble attempt to block and Raven callously slapped it out of the air and buried her fist into his ribcage. His chest burned with pain and thick blood splashed out from his mouth onto Raven's pale hands. Solid bone crashed into his cheek and nose, dazing Robin and severely obstructing his ability to continue breathing, and Raven's boot crunched against his ribs.

Raven reached out and placed both her palms onto his chest and let black energy erupt forth, propelling Robin off the ground and through the air. He landed heavily on his back and snapped into a roll, coming to a stop lying on his stomach and facing Raven. Robin weakly stared at her, dripping wet, as she lifted her arms and slowly floated upward, staring up at the sky.

----------

Cyborg pushed himself up to his feet and scanned the surrounding area with barely serviceable eyesight. It only took a moment for him to spot Speedy nearby, who was already on his hands and knees, coughing roughly and spitting water from his mouth. He moved quickly to Speedy's side and bent down over him.

Without looking up, Speedy said, "What's happening?"

"I don't know!" Cyborg replied, leaning closer so Speedy could hear him. "I can't see worth a damn!"

Speedy fumbled to pick up his bow and rose to his feet, stumbling slightly. Squinting his eyes, he immediately saw Raven rising higher from the ground and through the darkness he recognized bright red markings that surged over her entire body, frightfully illuminating her. His heart sank into his stomach. "She's resurrecting Trigon!" he shouted.

Cyborg grabbed Speedy by the elbow and started running across the pavement. "We've got to get closer to her!"

Raven's ascent stopped fifty feet above the ground and she remained stationary, slowly turning in counter clockwise rotations. Lightning streaked across the sky and the clouds swirled more rapidly. Tremors shook the earth, fracturing the concrete and sending thin cracks up the stone buildings' foundation.

"This body, forged in flame and hatred, is promised to you, my lord," she chanted, her voice echoing loudly.

Speedy came to a stop nearly forty feet away, fighting to maintain his balance against the powerful jolts beneath his feet.

"Destined from birth to return you to this world," Raven continued, "you were cruelly cast asunder by the portal herself."

"Do you have a shot?" Cyborg screamed.

"I think so!" Speedy hollered back, reaching into his quiver.

"Vanquished are the souls of Azarath!" screamed Raven. "Your time is nigh!"

Cyborg brought his head close to Speedy, fighting to talk louder than the thunder. "Make it lethal!"

Speedy looked at Cyborg with a look of terror, but did not say a word.

Grabbing him fiercely by the shoulder, Cyborg shouted, "This is all we've got! You have to take her down!"

Raven closed her eyes and let the rain strike her skin. "Use me as you will, that I may bring your final coming!"

A glint of metal flashed across the triangular blade at the end of the arrow in Speedy's gloved hand, and determinedly he placed it against the bowstring and pulled back, raising the entire bow upward.

"The gem was born of evil's fire," Raven said softly, letting her voice drop to near inaudible levels.

Speedy took delicate aim and lined up the metal tip with Raven through the driving rain.

"The gem will be his portal."

He adjusted by a millimetre to compensate for the howling wind, tensed his right arm and fought to maintain his line of sight as the wind soared aggressively against his body.

"He comes to claim, he comes to sire."

His muscles twitched, but he held on, waited for her body to rotate just a small amount more, and fired.

"The end of all things mortal!"

Two thick scarlet circles flashed outward from Raven, spinning around her body at a phenomenal speed, and a tremendously radiant white light appeared in front of her stomach, gradually expanding and consuming her. Her arms and legs shook in response to the overpowering force of energy, but she held herself in place.

Slowed by neither the rain nor the wind, the arrow sliced into the fabric of her leotard and plunged through the flesh on the left side of her chest, rupturing the right ventricle of her heart. A thin line of blood squirted out from the tiny opening around the shaft of the arrow, and Raven's arms and head sunk. With a brilliant flash the lights encircling her vanished and deep black seeped from every orifice and pore on her body. The energy cocooning her shimmered and then streaked upward as a thousand separate lines of black, disappearing into the dark clouds.

One final burst of lightning erupted from the sky and then the world calmed itself. The rain settled to a drizzle and then ceased entirely, and the swirling clouds broke apart and drifted higher, fading to grey. Pinpricks of light forced their way to the surface and Raven's cloak was tossed over her shoulder and around her body amid the last strong gust of wind, before it too settled to a whimper.

Her body arched backward and then fell, the only movement coming from the violet hair that waved messily in the air.

"Raven!" screamed Robin, using his arms to drag himself through blistering pain. He watched her body plummet helplessly, knowing this time he would be unable to catch her.

She struck the ground with a spray of water from the soaked earth and lay still, utterly unmoving. Robin's legs scrambled to propel him to his feet, and his fingers tightly gripped chunks of grass, pulling and yanking himself forward. Finally his right foot slammed onto the ground and he was able to stumble upward, heavily limping and clutching at his stomach during the horrific trek to Raven's side.

Her head tilted lifelessly to the side and one arm lay snugly against her ribs, the other stretching to the side with its palm facing upward. Blood trickled out from the corner of her mouth and her eyelids remained closed. A long arrow protruded upward from her chest, part of it coated in deep red. Robin sank to his knees, squishing into the thick mud, and his lips trembled.

"Raven…"

He wrapped his arms around Raven and pulled her up onto his thighs. Tears welled up in his eyes and dripped out from beneath his tattered mask, flowing down his face. One drop slipped off his chin and landed in the corner of Raven's eye, slowly moving downward and over her pale cheek. No breath escaped from her lips, and holding her close Robin could feel she lacked a heartbeat.

Robin softly sobbed and sank his head, resting his cheek on her forehead.

"Raven…"


	11. The Greatest of Azarath

One final drop of rain splashed onto Speedy's cheekbone and sunlight poured in through the dissipating clouds, though he was entirely unaware of the effects. Speedy felt neither the coolness of the precipitation nor the warmth of the sun's light. A wave of numbness coursed over his entire body when Raven fell from the sky, an unconscious reaction from the surreal nature of the situation. His lifeless fingers let his bow slide out from their grasp and Speedy now stood motionless, staring blankly at the sight before him.

Robin quivered with Raven in his arms, tears flowing from his eyes and spittle collecting in the corners of his mouth. The shaft of Speedy's yellow arrow extended a foot upward from her chest, shaking along with the tremors from Robin's body, and Speedy was unable to tear his eyes away from the bloodied point where arrow met flesh. His lower lip trembled and his breathing patterns were erratic and hoarse.

Cyborg placed his hand on Speedy's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. When he showed no reaction Cyborg whispered, "It had to be done."

Speedy let his eyelids close and sunk his head.

"I don't know if there was any way we could have possibly saved Raven. And we sure didn't have the time to find out."

"What have I done, Cyborg?" Speedy asked, apparently oblivious to Cyborg's words.

"You saved the world today. Don't tell yourself otherwise."

"I killed her," Speedy said softly. "I killed Raven. My friend."

"Raven would never have wanted to live at the cost of our lives. She'd have done all that was necessary to protect us. You know that."

"I still feel awful inside, like I betrayed her. You remember when Brother Blood was controlling us?" he asked. "I couldn't control my own actions, no matter how hard I fought it, but I could still see everything. When I attacked Raven, she put her own life at risk by fighting defensively. She could have easily hurt me, but she didn't. Is this how I've repaid her?"

"Some days protecting innocent lives is easy. But on others it becomes much harder. There are days that rip us apart emotionally. What we all have to remember is that we choose to put their needs above our own. We're all ready to make sacrifices—even the ultimate one. Raven knew it just as well as everyone else. Maybe more."

Speedy lifted his head to see Starfire standing over Robin, leaning heavily on Beast Boy, who was carefully holding her with his arms. She held her right hand against her mouth and her cheeks were already stained with tears, running over the dried blood.

"I'm sorry, Raven," Beast Boy said, fighting to get his words past tears. "I'm sorry for everything. I…" He bit his lip, struggling to speak. "I wish I'd told you…how much I cared about our friendship, and how much I cared for you."

Starfire coughed violently, but forced the words out. "You were one of the best friends I have ever had. You were my sister."

Bending down beside her body, Cyborg placed one of his hands on her knee. "Working on the T-Car with you is one of my most cherished memories. You always looked out for us, and saved our lives more times than we could ever count. I'm here today because of you. Goodbye, Raven."

"I'll miss you more than you'll ever know," Robin whispered after delicately laying her body on the soft grass. Despite the horrific carnage and combat, her face remained beautiful and innocent. Robin leaned down and gently kissed her forehead.

They stood still as time passed them by, holding their heads low. For a long while she had felt herself an outsider, but had died as part of a family, closer to her friends than she had ever thought possible. Three years ago she had accepted the destiny she was born into and even less than a year ago she had submitted to Slade and her father. Under no circumstances would she have ever wanted anyone to mourn her passing. Yet today their tears flowed forth around her.

Tiny speckles of light flickered on and off over the length of Raven's body, shaking the other Titans out of their temporary stupor. The white dots floated several inches above Raven, slowly drifting toward the brightest one that lay directly above her forehead. A reddish glow surrounded her chakra, above which the pinpricks of light accumulated into a magnificent ball that overwhelmed the gathered heroes, forcing each of them to shield their eyes. Even squinting and blocking his face with his right hand, Robin found it difficult to watch.

The glowing ball descended and touched Raven's face, coming into direct contact with her diamond chakra. It continued to glow red briefly as it fully absorbed the glorious sphere. For a moment nothing appeared to happen, and then instantaneously a stream of brilliant white shot upward and light surged over Raven's entire body, enshrouding her utterly.

Though it seemed impossible, the light grew stronger still, until it was too painful for any of the Titans to look upon it. Robin forced his eyes shut as firmly as he could, gritting his teeth and covering his face with both arms. The cries of agony made it clear that the others with him were experiencing the same anguish.

Abruptly the light vanished inward, disappearing into nothing. Robin hesitatingly lowered his arms and allowed his eyes to open gradually, blinking in rapid succession. His vision remained frazzled, greatly affected by the bright flashes. It took several long moments until he could see clearly, and his heart stopped when he could.

The space Raven's body had occupied only seconds before was now bare. Her body was no longer there.

--

She appeared to be perfectly at peace, lying completely straight, arms crossed atop her chest, not the slightest movement, floating several feet above the rough ground. Years of fighting, of constantly struggling to subdue the evil and crime around her, while also resisting the malevolence that lurked within herself, and finally she could rest. In death, she had found the peace that she had sought, had longed for, all her life.

Arella stroked her daughter's beautiful head, pushing short locks of violet away from her forehead and closed eyes. "My poor Raven," she whispered. "You deserved so much more than this."

She allowed her gaze to drift upward from her daughter and stared out toward the bare nothingness of their existence. Bleak plains were broken only by craggy precipices and stalagmites, while a reddish-purple sky loomed over head. There was no sun, no stars, not even a fleeting breeze, and from what Arella could tell, time itself had no place in the barren void. Silenced Azarathians gathered behind her, mournfully looking at what had been the final living member of their now dead society.

The magic of Azarath had somehow allowed its inhabitants to cling to some form of consciousness, existing beyond the Netherworld itself. Arella knew her current state was not life in any conceivable fashion, yet because their essences somehow remained, neither was it utter death. A terrifyingly chilling wave had passed through them only moments before, and instinctually Arella knew it had to mean her daughter was dead. Tragically, her suspicions were confirmed a short while later, when her daughter's body manifested itself before Arella's eyes.

Her eyes came upon Raven again. "What has brought her here?"

Azar, High Priestess of what had once been Azarath, stood beside her. "I can only believe that our energies brought her to us, much as Azarath's energies sent us here."

"Despite Trigon's death, his legacy continues to haunt my family."

"His hatred, his need to bring about the destruction of everything we know, is absolute. Even in death his teachings lived on. For that reason Raven was never truly safe, despite what I chose to believe."

Arella caught a painful lump in her throat, felt it clear even as tears formed in her eyes. "Is there anything we could have done for her?"

"She chose as much of her path as was available. Only so much of her journey was open and free to her. Trigon lingered in Raven all her life, and Acheron's machinations allowed his presence to return. I feel that none of us could interrupt destiny."

"I can't accept that," Arella firmly stated, shaking her head. "I allowed the distance between us to grow steadily, always assuring myself it was for her protection. She is my only child, my only love. I won't allow her spirit to pass to this realm. I can choose to do what is necessary. I can willing extinguish the last vestiges of my life essence, so that I may bring life to Raven once more."

Azar looked ahead for a moment, her face remaining passive and betraying no emotions. "Such a thing will destroy what remains of you. Even this," she raised her arms and swept them around in a circle, "will end. You will be no more."

"But my daughter could return. We are all connected, and the energy from me could revive her."

"You could not do this alone. Perhaps were you still alive. But not in this form, not in this place. Our spirits are too faint."

"Together we could." Arella slowly turned, partially afraid to see the reaction among the others, yet drawn to them by the glimmer of hope they possessed. "As one people, our spirits remain strong."

"The choice belongs to each of you alone," Azar said flatly, arching her upraised palm across the multitude.

A firm resolve was displayed on every face Arella could see. Not one appeared uneasy or shakeable. Slowly heads began to nod, and the courage grew palpable.

Azar nodded. "I will play my part in the hopes that Raven can once more find life."

Arella leaned in close and gently kissed her daughter's forehead. Tears continued to flow, only now joy was the catalyst rather than sadness. "My child, this is my final farewell. Know that I loved you so dearly I gave up my life. Find the peace you so rightly deserve." She glanced around her, aware of the close proximity of the entire surviving populace of Azarath. None of them appeared to be in any state of discomfort, and all of them looked reassured of their decision. "I love you, Raven," Arella said softly into her ear.

Azar stepped forward and carefully lifted Raven's right hand off her chest, wrapping her own around the delicate fingers. "Take her left hand into yours, Arella."

Faces and robes faded away into light, brightening the pale surroundings. The white shapes drifted forward and merged with Azar and Arella, until the two women glowed magnificently and not a single other body remained. Both were overwhelmed by the brightness and for several long seconds they stood as mere pillars of light, devoid of any features. Brilliant white stretched over the desolate plain, bringing illumination into the realm for the very first time.

Azar's soft voice broke through the silence. "She lived her entire life in darkness, but never succumbed to it. Through her, our people will live on. She is the last of Azarath."

"No," Arella replied. "She is far more. She is the greatest of Azarath."

Steadily the women melted away into nothing, and the white flowed into Raven's hands, up her arms, and across her entire body, filling every pore. Lines of light erupted outward from her skin, followed by thick streaks that soon filled the sky. Raven's body remained still throughout, until she too vanished from the barren void.

--

The mood was one of defeat. Despite having won a major victory and saving untold lives, the Titans experienced despair. No celebration seemed appropriate.

Robin's head hung low, his eyes fixed firmly on the ground. Yet he was not even aware of what lay in front of him, so blurred was his vision and so dejected was his attitude. Robin was not entirely sure why Raven's body had disappeared a short while before, but had accepted it as a part of her Azarathian heritage. It made her passage all the more difficult, knowing that they could not properly lay her body to rest. Incalculable citizens of Jump City, not to mention every Titan, owed their lives to Raven, and Robin did not feel it was right that none of them would be able to bid her farewell in the most appropriate fashion.

A tiny dot of light caught Robin's peripheral vision, tugging his mind back to the present. Looking up from the ground he noticed several more, floating downward mere feet in front of his face.

"What is that?" Cyborg asked, reaching out with his arm only to find that his hand passed completely through.

"They appear to be tiny stars," Starfire remarked. "And there are dozens of them."

The Titans watched in awed silence, staring at the dancing pinpricks of light. Upon landing on the wet blades of grass below, the dots' radiance was magnified even more, until a section of ground five feet across glowed warmly. Steadily the light rose higher, taking on a smooth shape with rounded contours and perfectly angled proportions. Once more its intensity built to such a degree that the gathered Titans could no longer maintain eye contact, but were forced to look away.

Abruptly the light shrank inward, leaving several stunned heroes fighting to regain their vision. Blurred dark spots danced around and slowly coalesced, taking on shapes and forms, until each of them could see once again. The sight that greeted them defied all belief.

Raven sat upon the ground with her face buried in her hands, moaning softly, the edge of her body surrounded on all sides by a magnificent white outline. The Titans stared uncomprehendingly, unable to move a muscle or even speak a single word, shell-shocked beyond a point any of them had experienced before. Slowly Raven let her hands fall to her sides and coughed lightly, revealing a brightly glowing red chakra. Long untamed strands of violet hair swarmed over her head and pushed beyond her shoulders, swaying amid the soft breeze, and once again her leotard and cloak had turned to a strong and vibrant shade of white.

She flicked one of the thick bunches of hair away from her left eye and cocked her head to the side, staring up at the Titans with the same blank look spread across her face that was visible on each of theirs. Rapid blinks were followed by a slight movement of her lips, and then Raven rose to her feet, pushing her cloak away from her right arm and letting it fall into place behind her. Light encapsulated her body for another moment before it, along with the red glow of her chakra, faded away.

Robin felt his chest tighten and a tingling sensation leapt over his arms and down his legs. He found himself unable to move toward her, even as his mind screamed out for contact. The corners of Raven's lips twitched for a fleeting second, and then her entire mouth opened into a wide smile, showcasing perfect white teeth, and releasing all the tension that had penetrated Robin's chest.

He rushed toward her and tightly wrapped his arms around her slender waist, pulling Raven against his own body and feeling all his emotions, all the heartache, anguish and sorrow, melt away as she grabbed him with her own arms and squeezed gently. Even the tremendous pain in his chest seemed to subside temporarily, allowing him to focus all his energy on the beautiful woman in front of him. Robin lifted her off the ground and was overcome by the onrush of warmth, while Raven found herself actually laughing, overjoyed to be in his arms, spinning around.

Despite her horrific injuries, Starfire limped forward to her friend, clutching her mangled left hand against her stomach. As she approached, Raven and Robin pulled an arm away from each other and stretched out with them, pulling Starfire toward their bodies. She leaned in close and placed her right arm around Raven's back, lowering her head until it nestled against Raven's shoulder and letting tears flow freely from her eyes. Beast Boy squirmed his way up against Raven opposite Starfire and closed his arms around her waist. Cyborg's cheerful and bellowing echo of "Raven!" drowned out the laughter and tears and he wrapped his enormous arms around all of them, bending forward to place a soft kiss on Raven's cheek.

Raven's laughter was choked by tears of jubilation, and for a long while the five Titans, the only family any of them had, held each other close.

Speedy watched with quiet relief, keeping a slight distance. He was thrilled to see Raven alive, but for the moment he could not bring himself to make contact with her, so horrified was he at his own actions. He simply could not come close to her until he had apologized for what he had done. The internal agony and torment had dissipated when Speedy saw Raven alive, but still the regret remained.

Gradually each of the Titans stepped back and stood in a small circle. "I can't believe what I'm seeing," Robin said enthusiastically, staring at Raven and still tightly holding one of her hands. "We all thought you were gone forever."

Raven still maintained a large smile and kept looking back and forth from each of her friends, savouring the joy of seeing each of them again. "Neither can I," she said, happily shrugging and wiping a tear from her eye. "I didn't think it was possible for me to survive."

"You have any idea how you did?" Cyborg asked.

Raven shook her head. "I'm not sure. I wish I could tell you what happened, but I just don't know."

Robin reached up with his other hand and softly ran his fingers through Raven's long purple hair. "I wasn't expecting to see this look again."

"That makes two of us," Raven replied with a smile. "Who knows? Maybe I'll even keep it this time."

Finally noticing again that he could only see out of one eye, Cyborg was shaken back to the reality that everyone aside from Raven was seriously wounded. "We'll all have a killer party in the Tower later, but right now I need to make sure everyone is okay. And I can't do that here."

"Cyborg's right," Robin said, tenderly touching the burns on his torso. "We're in pretty bad shape." He turned his head to look at Raven once more. "You think you have enough strength to get us back?"

"I think so." She stepped back from the others and snapped her arms upward crisply. Brilliant white energy swirled about the group and spread around them into a large cocoon that sealed them off entirely. "Next stop, Titans' Tower," Raven announced, before the bright energy, and the six heroes, disappeared from the park.

--

Robin gritted his teeth as Cyborg worked on his chest. He had insisted Cyborg deal with Starfire first, followed by Beast Boy, which together had taken nearly two hours, and in that time Robin had found the pain building. He could not fathom how intense the pain would be if it were left untreated any longer, so Robin was deeply relieved when Beast Boy slid off the bed in the medical bay and stumbled out of the room wearing bandages.

Conjuring up his total concentration allowed Robin to push the pain and discomfort from his mind, letting his attention drift far from the room. With no true conception of time, Robin was unsure how much had ticked by when Cyborg finally stood up and announced he was done.

Robin stood up from the bed and carefully slipped a clean shirt over the white bandages wrapped tightly around his torso and right shoulder, wincing under the sharp pain.

"It's going to take a while before you feel up to par again," Cyborg said, peeling off his plastic gloves and dropping them into a small steel container sitting atop a nearby table that also held bloodied gauze. "Your pain is acute, which means it's related to a sudden trauma and shouldn't last more than a short while. Typically acute pain is gone within a few days, but in your case I would expect it to last at least a few weeks. Left untreated, acute pain turns chronic, which can continue indefinitely. Beast Boy and Starfire both have acute pain too, with Starfire's being the worst in her left arm. But her alien physiology leads to healing far more rapid than humans. That means you're the only one who'll be needing medication."

"I don't want to be on medication, Cyborg."

"I figured you'd say that. But you need to be. The other option is to remain in the Tower for the next month and relax, but I know there's no chance of you accepting that one."

Robin smiled faintly and nodded. "Fine, I'll take the medicine."

"Good man. Your injuries are severe, but I've done what I can regarding treatment already." Cyborg turned around and opened a cabinet drawer nearby, taking out a small white container wrapped in an orange label. He held it up in front of him and gave it a shake. "This is Meperidine, an opioid analgesic. You're probably more familiar with its brand name Demerol. It's a fully synthetic chemical substance that acts like morphine and relieves the pain. It's a very strong pain killer, which is what you'll need for the first little while. You made it through the fighting on adrenaline, but as that wears off, as you've discovered in the last few hours, the pain is intense."

Robin took the container from Cyborg with one hand while the other held onto his ribs. Carefully twisting the lid, more delicately after a burst of burning pain shot up into his chest, he opened it to have a look at the small, circular white tablets. "So how often can I take these?"

"Go take one right now, and I'll have a schedule for you shortly. Stick to it strictly, because medication like this can be dangerous if overused. With any luck you'll only have to use it for a short while, and then I can give you a less powerful drug."

"Thanks, Cyborg."

--

Raven gently tapped on Beast Boy's door with her knuckles, and a moment later he slid it open.

"You're looking much better," she said, carefully surveying his assorted bandages and stitches.

Beast Boy studied Raven's wardrobe and long hair quizzically, furrowing his eyebrows. "I'm never going to get used to your new look. So you're really keeping it this way?"

Raven nodded. "Yeah, I think I am. I might cut the hair a little shorter, but for now the white clothing is going to stay."

"How come? Do you feel different?"

"I do feel different actually. I feel…I don't know. It's hard to explain. Almost like I've finally been freed of my past. I thought a new look would fit."

Neither of them spoke for several long seconds. "So," Beast Boy said, finally breaking the awkward silence. "Uh, did you want to talk about something?"

Raven sighed. "I wanted to apologize for the way I acted a few days ago."

"Raven, you don't have to—"

"No, I do. I was upset with you, but I shouldn't have snapped the way I did. You're a pain in the ass, that's for sure," she said with a slight smile, "but you didn't deserve such a harsh response. You came to apologize to me, and I should have treated you better."

"You were right to call me selfish," Beast Boy said, throwing his arms up. "You just wanted to help me after that thing with Terra and I turned you away."

Raven chuckled mildly. "See? This is what I'm talking about with you being an ass. Just accept my apology. It'll make me feel much better. I want us to be on good terms again."

Beast Boy smiled. "Okay, Rae."

"Thank you." She tilted her eyes upward and grinned. "Nice hair, by the way."

"Oh, yeah," he replied, running his hand along the bare half of his head. "You think I should cut the hair on the other half? I want to look as less weird as possible."

"You always look weird, even with a full head of hair. You're green and you have pointy ears." She turned on the balls of her feet and started walking down the hallway. "Cyborg wanted to see me in the med bay, so I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, see ya!" Beast Boy called out. When she rounded the corner at the end of the hallway, he smiled to himself.

--

Speedy picked at one of his fingernails, sighing deeply while he waited in the Operations Room. His heels steadily banged into the drawers beneath the countertop he was perched on as he continued to swing his legs back and forth. Robin was in absolutely no condition for a serious discussion when they arrived back at the Tower, so Speedy had simply decided to wait alone. With too many emotions and disconnected thoughts running through his mind, Speedy wanted to avoid talking with anyone for the moment, except for his imminent meeting with Robin.

The main doors off to Speedy's left whooshed open and Robin slowly walked down the stairs, limping slightly. He wore clean clothes and a small amount of colour had returned to his skin. Steadying himself on the closest counter, he asked, "You needed to talk to me about something?"

Speedy hopped off his counter and nodded. "I did. About why I'm here."

"I figured you got here too quickly to have come from Steel City."

"You got it. That's because I was already on my way when I got your call."

"So what's going on then? Something we should be aware of?"

"Definitely something you should be aware of. I was tracking Deadshot."

"Deadshot? Isn't he some sort of gun hand?"

"Much more than that," Speedy answered. "He's an assassin. Green Arrow used to tell me he was the deadliest marksman he'd ever come across. And he wasn't exaggerating." Speedy lifted the thick folder sitting beside him and dropped it in front of Robin. "I had these files in my motorcycle."

Robin sifted through the information and felt a knot tighten in his stomach when he saw that more than two thirds of the papers were devoted strictly to the individuals he had killed.

"I've been trying to keep a watch on him for a while now, hoping I'd be able to get close enough to take him down. But so far I haven't had much luck. He's exceptionally good at what he does, and covers his tracks well."

"And you tracked him here?"

With a grim look on his face, Speedy nodded. "I lost track of him not too long before you called, but I know he's in Jump City. And if he is here, it's for a job. I'm sure of it. I've got no information, but he's here for an assassination."

"Then we need to forward all of this to Captain Marshall and the JCPD. Maybe they have some idea who he might be after."

"Robin, I've seen the results of his work too many times, and I'm in no mood to let it happen again. I'm staying here until we get him. Bee already knows I'll be gone for however long it takes."

Robin closed the folder and tucked it under his arm. "I'll send this to Marshall and tomorrow morning we'll being making our move against him."

--

Cyborg hit the switch for the light box in the examining room beside the medical bay, and though it came on after several seconds, the light faded in and out with a flicker. The glass was severely cracked from the carnage of several days past, and its performance was just barely good enough to illuminate the bluish-grey tinged sheet of transparent film that Cyborg had placed against it.

Raven stood against the far wall in the room and fidgeted with her fingers, nervously waiting for Cyborg's verdict and desperately trying to steady her emotions.

Cyborg turned to face her with a smile plastered across his face. "It's gone, Rae," he said. "Your chaotic region is completely gone."

"Ha hah!" Raven exclaimed, jumping off the ground suddenly. She lunged toward Cyborg and leapt up at him, wrapping her arms around his neck, feeling joy coursing through her entire body. When Cyborg gently lowered her back to the ground, she asked, "Are you sure?"

"Positive," he replied. "I double checked everything and magnified the image to its fullest capacity. Your brain isn't showing a single trace of it." Cyborg placed his large hand on Raven's shoulder firmly. "Rae, your connection with Trigon is gone. You're free."

She took a deep breath and ran a hand through her purple hair, exhaling slowly, but not for a heartbeat did the smile on her face lessen. "I almost can't believe it. After all these years his influence is finally gone."

"Acheron's death must have wiped it out. Or maybe even your own death." Cyborg shrugged. "I don't know what exactly happened, but I can tell you that you're one hundred percent free."

Raven stayed silent, fully taking in the incredible feeling she was experiencing. "Thank you for this, Cyborg."

"No problem, Rae."

She placed a small hand over her mouth to cover a yawn. "I think that I'd better go try to get some sleep. But tomorrow morning we'll make some of your flapjacks to celebrate. Okay?"

"You know I couldn't say no to that." Cyborg watched her step toward the door, and then added, "I'm happy you're okay."

Raven tilted her head in his direction. "Me too," she replied, smiling.

--

Raven turned the last corner leading to her room and was surprised to see Speedy leaning against the wall adjacent to her door. "Hey."

Speedy pushed himself up from the wall and weakly smiled. "Hi Raven."

"Aren't you going to get some rest?"

"Soon enough," he said. "But I wanted to talk to you first."

"Oh?" Raven replied, raising an eyebrow. "About what?"

"I…I'm so sorry for what I did to you."

"What are you talking about?"

"I shot you," he said weakly.

"Speedy," she started, "you did the right thing. You set me free."

"Yeah, I know." He paused, taking a long breath. "I just can't help but feel terrible."

"You shouldn't feel bad. You saved everyone by doing it, and I'm okay now."

"I realize all that, I really do. I just wanted to tell you how sorry I was for what I did. If there was any other way to save you…"

"But there wasn't," she interjected. "There wasn't any time to figure things out. I'm more thankful than anyone else that you acted. And it was a very brave thing you did. Fighting enemies is easy, but being forced to fight a friend, well, I can't imagine how hard that must have been."

Speedy smiled faintly.

"Just know that you did what was right. A few days ago Robin told me something that Batman had said to him years ago, something that really fits. 'The hardest thing you'll ever have to do is what's right.' I'm glad you did it. Otherwise none of us would be here now."

"Thanks, Raven. I think I really needed to hear that from you."

She smiled warmly at him. "Now come on, we all need to get a good night's rest."

"Night, Raven," Speedy said.

"Sleep well." She stood outside her door while he slowly walked down the hallway. When he was out of sight Raven entered her room and let out a peaceful sigh. Through the courage of her friends the threat of Trigon had finally been ended, and somehow she had survived. Raven had been given another chance to live her life. And she wasn't going to waste it.

She kicked off her boots, tossed her cloak over top of them and climbed into bed, pulling the covers up right to her chin. Yes, she was going to live her life fully with her friends at her side. But for now, all she wanted more than anything else in the world was a full night's sleep.

--

In a way, it's kind of hard for me to be done with this story. I've worked on it for so long, and I've had an incredible time doing it. Thank you so much to everyone who read it. All of you are what motivated me and kept me writing. It seems like I'm always saying how sorry I am for taking so bloody long to update, but it's still true. I never intend for so much time to pass by. So an even bigger thanks goes out to everyone who stuck with it up until the very end, despite my annoying habit of putting you through long waits.

As an interesting side note, when I was editing this chapter I had the radio on in the background, and as I read over the part where the Titans were standing over Raven's body, "When You're Gone" by Avril Lavigne started playing. It was actually kind of creepy how appropriate it was.

Anyways, I'm just about to start my next story. Pay close attention to the last few pages of this chapter, because I'm very deliberately setting up the next one. Oh, and as a special treat, I'm going to be adding a little extra something to this story shortly. An Epilogue! Woot. And it'll set up the next story even better than this last chapter.

Once again, thanks so much everyone! You make all the late nights worthwhile.


	12. Epilogue: Never a Quiet Night

One Month Later…

Droplets of rain dotted the window, making only the faintest of sounds with each successive strike, and each tiny ball twisted its way down the glass surface upon impact, creating a wavy texture. Christopher Klatt stopped on the squeaky polished floor and stared out at the night sky with his hands clasped behind his back. The darkness, combined with bright floodlights near to the ground, made it almost impossible to see the sky itself. Yet Christopher had always enjoyed watching storms, even a weak one. In the distance a flash of sheet lightning ruptured from above the thick clouds, illuminating them momentarily, and several seconds later a pair of soft bellowing claps of thunder filled the air.

Christopher turned away and continued his march down the long hallway, fidgeting with his uncomfortable buttoned shirt and hiking up his large belt, which always tended to drift downward. Every several steps he instinctively placed his right hand onto the handgun that sat snugly against his hip. Caution and preparedness were tremendous assets, and Christopher recognized the importance of continually being ready for action.

He rounded the corner and came out into a much larger room that stood two stories high. The cylindrical steel bars to his left and right reflected the sparse amount of illumination emitted by the ceiling lights, which shifted and changed against the smooth surface as he passed by each cell. Reaching the end of the wide corridor, Christopher slid a heavy steel door open and firmly closed it behind himself, listening for the three consecutive clicks that signified it was properly shut.

Christopher smiled after passing through another set of doors. "Hey Steve. How you holding up?"

Steve lowered his newspaper and set it down on the desk in front of him. "Not well. These night shifts are killing me. You know I'm going to be missing Scott's soccer game tomorrow night?"

"Sorry to hear that, bud. Oh, that reminds me. I know it's late notice, but could you cover my shift Saturday evening? It's Veronica's birthday party. We were supposed to have it Friday, but my parents can't get into town until Saturday morning."

"How old's she turning? Five?"

Christopher smiled. "Yep. And she just wouldn't let us have the party without her grandparents there."

"Jeez, seems like yesterday she was crawling around in diapers. Yeah sure, I can cover you. But you owe me a six pack for it," he said, pointing a beefy finger up at Christopher.

"I think I can manage that," he replied, laughing.

"Man, I can't wait until the end of month."

"Damn right. I'm looking forward to working days again."

"And I don't know about you," Steve began, "but this prison really freaks me out during the night. All those crazies in there seem so much worse in the dark. Just glad I'm sitting out here at the computer."

"It's not that bad in there. Mostly pretty quiet these hours."

A soft whoosh to the right caught their attention, and both men turned to see another guard come through one of the doors.

"Christopher. Steve," he said, nodding his head at each.

"Evening Sebastian," Steve said. "How's C Wing treating you? Still difficult to see what—"

A bone-chilling scream echoed against the solid walls and rattled through their heads, its sheer intensity terrifying the three men.

"What in God's name was _that_?" Christopher asked frantically.

"Hell if I know," Sebastian said. "Come on, we've got to—"

"Oh shit!" Steve screamed, firmly grabbing the handle of his gun and yanking it from its holster. Even through the dancing shadows on the far side of the room he could see a sleek, muscular black Doberman charging toward him, its thick paws smacking hard against the solid ground, bubbling spit and foam pouring out of its mouth. Steve squeezed the trigger and discharged his handgun, feeling the muscles in his arms twitch with each successive shot from the kickback. Bright flashes erupted from the end of the barrel, spewing metal that surged forth. Steve frantically back pedalled, releasing round after round, and was horrified to see that none of the bullets struck the ferocious beast.

"Steve!" Christopher shouted. "Stop firing God damn it!" A loud ricochet snapped off an angled section of wall and he instinctively thrust his arm upward and ducked. "What the hell are you firing at? There's _nothing_ there!"

"We've got to stop him!" Sebastian screamed, clutching Christopher's shoulder and screaming over the gunshots. When the words had left his mouth he whipped his hand away suddenly, stumbling backward with utter terror displayed in his wide eyes and drooping mouth. He fell to the ground hard and wildly scrambled away with his palms and the heels of his feet. "Oh God," he whispered. "Oh God, oh God."

Sebastian's stomach lurched violently as he continued to stare at Christopher, watching with agony as his flesh peeled away, melting off in a bloody mess that steadily exposed grey bone. Christopher's eyes slid out from their sockets, pulling sticky strands of skin with them, and cracks appeared in his skull that fractured into pieces. Brain matter oozed out from beneath and stuck to the pulpy mass that rapidly lost all traces of cohesion and crumpled to the ground with a disgusting squishy sound, collecting in a pool of crimson and pink.

Christopher scrunched up his face and he stared at Sebastian in total incomprehension, so taken aback that he could not even find words to say. Sebastian repeatedly hollered and cried out in a frenzied manner, lacking total sanity, and Christopher was at a lost as to what he should do to calm him. Resolving to find him help momentarily, he turned toward the greater threat and moved quickly to disarm Steve before he accidentally shot one of them.

Before he could even take one step forward, a wall of magnificent orange flame surged around the nearest corner, overtaking the small room with breathtaking speed. Christopher screamed out and leapt over the desk to find shelter from the intense heat, shattering the computer monitor and severing cables. The door to his right exploded off its hinges and the metal wickedly contorted and crumbled against the opposite wall, letting fire erupt from the now empty frame.

"Get out of there, Steve!" he shouted madly, sticking his head above the top of the desk. Incandescent yellow and orange plunged against Steve and his body burst into flame, and he stumbled for a short distance with his hands waving savagely above his head. A soft cry came from his mouth and then he collapsed to the ground. Fire had already engulfed Sebastian, who struggled to put himself out, desperately slamming into the wall and leaping onto the floor. Christopher coughed from the billowing smoke that filled the air and tears rushed out of his eyes.

The Doberman pounded against Steve's chest, aggressively knocking him over the top of the desk and flat onto his back. He flailed and thrust his arms out in front of him as the vicious creature lunged at his throat. Warm breath coursed over Steve's face, spittle dripped onto his skin and barks pierced his ears. He squeezed the dog's throat with all his strength, pushing against its onrushing force. Its jaws glistened with saliva and small bursts of steam curled upward from beneath its lips. Steadily the Doberman's mouth grew closer and closer, and Steve's muscles ached from the strenuous exertion. He shut his eyes, waiting for the final, horrific end, and screamed.

Sebastian wailed hoarsely, suddenly no longer pulling himself backward. His own skin was peeling off before his eyes, smeared across the smooth flooring. He reeled in abject terror when his right shin faded away, leaving the entire limb below the knee detached from the remainder of his body. Sebastian screamed hysterically, holding his hands in front of his face. His nails slid down the back of his fingers, while the tips of the extremities melted. Within seconds his hands were no more than wavy, squirming lumps. His screams echoed loudly until his jawbone disconnected on the left side, flopping to the right and silencing his cries.

Christopher clutched at his throat, hacking and wheezing through the thick black plumes that surrounded him. Fighting against the depletion of energy reserves that came with lack of oxygen, he managed to crawl to the door that led back into the prison's first set of holding cells. He reached up and slammed his palm on the door's release, distraught to find his way continued to be blocked by the thick door. Christopher rose to his knees and pounded his fists on the metal, all the while feeling the intense heat of encroaching flames. The skin of his back tingled slightly, then burned ferociously, creeping up his spine, eating through his polyester uniform and taking the very flesh off, and then steadily the feeling turned once more to a weak tingling as he lost the ability to register pain.

The solid door quietly opened, revealing the frame of a slender woman. She peacefully walked forward, pausing for a moment to stare disdainfully down at the man writhing in agony at her feet, and then stepped over him, ignoring his screams and cries for help. To her right another man lay silently, his body twisted and contorted awkwardly. The woman delicately moved toward the computer desk, picked up a pen in her left hand and scribbled four words onto a scrap of paper that she tore from a clipboard. Bending down, she folded it twice and tucked it into the breast pocket of the prone guard's shirt, slightly higher than a small nametag that read 'Steve Cederstrom'.

She stood up and spun on her heels, now facing a third man whose entire body shivered and convulsed with spasms repeatedly. Her face betrayed no emotion, but remained stoic and uncaring. Slowly she reached up past the pink crescent scar that emerged from beneath her hairline and placed her fingertips on the thin grey band that circled her forehead, lifting it away from the forest green hair that was now nearly long enough to brush against her shoulders. With a fluid determination she placed the device onto the deep brown desk and strode forward to the door that led out of the prison.

As she walked, Phobia allowed herself a smile.

--

Whoa now. I really hope the ending blew some of your minds. So yes, Phobia is out and after revenge. Combined with the threat of Deadshot, it'll make for a thrilling story. I want to get a lot of work done on it before I upload it, so don't expect anything for a while. At the very least a few months. I know, it sucks to wait. But the more work I get done on it before uploading, the faster I can update each chapter. Thanks again to everyone who read through this story. And start getting excited for my third book... "Retribution"


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